GRDJ
by TheLittleJimmy
Summary: We tell our children stories. We do so to inspire them, to encourage them and to entertain them. Some stories can lift your spirits, others can make you cry and some can sew fear. Some are real, and many are simply fantasies, but all share a common role. They teach a lesson.
1. Interactions

**Ok so this is my first time trying fanfiction and I love the RWBY universe so I knew I had to do it in this. I'm trying to keep it canon but I may decide to just roll with whatever crazy ideas I come up with. Any tips, reviews, criticisms or comments on the story or my writing style are greatly encouraged. Please enjoy.**

**Editted 16/8/2016.  
**

* * *

Devon wandered over to the side of the airship and stopped as he reached the window. He looked out at the landscape, and marvelled at the towering glory that was Beacon academy. A calm smile made its way onto his face and he let out a small sigh. He had been looking forward to enrolling at Beacon and finally learning to become a huntsman. He knew it was a long way before he could reach his true goal, but he knew this was the best path.

He turned from the view and instead examined the others on the deck. Devon considered himself a strong fighter, but he knew he was far from the best or strongest to be attending Beacon this year. As he watched all of the other freshmen on the airship he took note of those who looked particularly powerful or skilled, especially those who might have high intelligence or cunning. Some were talking excitedly about being accepted, some of them looked nervous and others just seemed downright uninterested, never looking up from their scrolls.

His view rested on a gorgeous blonde nearby, her golden locks reaching all the way down to her hips, and her lilac eyes filled with joy and a hint of cheekiness. She was talking excitedly with a nervous looking girl in a red hood, who looked younger than the others on the deck, probably by a year or two. He smiled slightly. She must be pretty skilled to have been accepted into beacon at her age. She was definitely one to watch. He let his eyes roam the blonde again – she had a really nice figure after all – before moving on to others.

He saw a rather large boy, about a head taller than himself, with a bulking figure, short brown hair and an arrogant sneer on his face. It seemed Beacon had accepted its fair share of assholes this year too. Unfortunately he knew he would have to join with some of these people in order to form a team for his time here at Beacon. He had already decided his path was to be a solitary one, as angst fuelled as that sounded. Not because he hated people or was too arrogant to work with others. It was simply because he couldn't go through the pain of losing someone again.

His thoughts were soon interrupted when his eyes met those of a girl across the deck. She noticed his gaze and flashed him a smile. And boy did she have a smile. Devon froze for a moment, the attention catching him off guard, before he relaxed a little and returned a weak smile. The girl's eyes brightened at the gesture and she started to make her way over to him.

He watched as her dirty blonde hair swayed gently behind her as she walked and his gaze wandered down the rest of her body. He noticed that she wasn't wearing any armour, instead she wore a grey tank top which hugged her figure, accentuating her generous chest, and tight black shorts showing off her smooth but powerful looking legs. Despite her somewhat casual appearance she did not seem out of place among all of the combat ready students on the airship.

The thing that really caught Devon's attention though, was that smile. Her green eyes lit up her face as it shattered his thoughts, bringing him under some sort of spell. Just before she reached him, he noticed the handgun strapped to her thigh just above her right knee. It was black with strange blue veins running along the body, but Devon didn't have time to admire her accessory as the girl closed in on him.

"Hi! I'm Gale," she greeted before running her gaze down his body and back up again to his eyes. "And what might I call such a handsome gentleman as yourself?" she added, a sly smile coming to her lips.

Devon was taken aback by the girl's forwardness and took a second to register that he had been asked a question. It had been a while since he had been flirted with, he was a bit rusty. He wiped the surprised look from his face and put on a small smile. "Devon," he stated simply.

The girl flashed him that magnificent smile again, "Well Devon, what would you say to-"

The girl named Gale was cut off when a flash of yellow appeared next to her. The blonde girl Devon had...watched earlier had appeared seemingly out of nowhere and draped an arm over Gale's shoulders, leaning on her with a mischievous grin on her face.

"What have you found here Gale?" the blonde asked teasingly, "Delicate girl like you shouldn't be talking to strange boys."

"Me? Delicate? You've seen what I can do to a man Yang, with both a bad..." Gale looked to Devon with a suggestive smirk, "...and a good touch."

The blonde girl apparently known as Yang chuckled, "Attagirl! Just like mama Yang taught you! See, Ruby? This girl knows how to make friends."

Devon noticed the girl in red from before standing awkwardly next to Yang. "Yaaaaaang..." she groaned quietly. Her eyes lifted to the hilt of one Devon's blades that was protruding over his right shoulder from behind his back. She opened her mouth to say something, but at that moment the airship docked at Beacon and the doors slid open. Devon took this as his chance to leave the prolonged social encounter. As much as he enjoyed the fact that three women were showing interest in him he didn't want to form any attachments in his time here.

"Ladies," Devon nodded to them and made his way to the doors.

"But you didn't give me your number!" Gale called out from behind him.

Devon stopped to look over his shoulder. The girl had that dazzling smile on again, and it took all of his self-control not to give in and crumble under her gaze. Clearly this girl was used to getting her way with boys, maybe a little rejection would do her some good? He wasn't cruel, but at the same time the less he had to deal with anyone coming on to him, the better.

"Hmm, you're right," he replied flatly, trying his best to keep an uninterested expression on his face.

As he turned back and continued on his way off the deck, he heard two of the girls gasp and some hushed talking. He just shook his head slightly and sighed. He hoped this wasn't going to be a regular thing.

* * *

Devon followed the crowds to the main hall, where the school's headmaster, Professor Ozpin, had begun to make a speech, welcoming the new students to Beacon. He overheard some angry voices and looked around until he noticed the yellow and red girls from before engaged in some argument with a girl in white. He recognised her instantly as Weiss Schnee, the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. He let out a breath and rolled his eyes. They'd probably found a way to aggravate the pompous child. Rich people.

"Seems like everyone is making friends today."

He turned to see who had made the comment and noticed the girl to his right watching the same commotion he was. The girl looked up at him in surprise.

"S-sorry, I-I didn't mean to say that out loud," she mumbled in apology, looking down to her feet.

Devon looked over the girl. She was pretty, with jet black hair reaching down to her upper back, jade coloured eyes and a slim but toned body.

"Relax Jade, you've only been here two hours, you have another four years to make friends." Devon looked to the other side of the girl to identify the new converser. She looked identical to the first girl except for one startling feature. While the first girl's eyes were jade in colour, hers were black with jade pupils. It was as if their eyes were the exact inverse of each other's.

The new girl raised her eyebrow for a moment and Devon realised he was staring. Not one to be embarrassed easily, he simply held her gaze. After a moment a smile came to her lips and she tapped the girl known as Jade on her shoulder.

"Hey. How about this guy?" The second girl moved closer to stand next to the first and offered her hand, "Hi, I'm Raven, and this is Jade. I don't know if you can tell but... we're twins!"

The girl called Jade looked up at Devon nervously while the other, Raven, stood confidently with a smile on her face. He took the outstretched hand and shook it. "Devon," he greeted and offered his hand to Jade. She waited for a moment, eyeing the appendage as if she was unsure how to proceed. Eventually she took his hand and lightly shook it. "Sorry, I only wanted to be polite, but I'm not really here to make friends. It was nice meeting the two of you though."

He gave them a small smile and returned his attention to the speech. He heard one of them sigh but kept his attention on the professor. He hated having to be so cold, but at least he could try to be polite about it.

* * *

After the opening announcements Devon made his way to the communal sleeping area for the new students in the ballroom. He found a spot in the corner, away from the majority, and set out the sleeping bag given to him. He didn't need much to live, and didn't really care for fashion, so he hadn't brought anything with him besides his weapons, armour and a change of clothes. He could always get whatever he needed from the school's services or from the shops in Vale, and money wasn't a huge issue considering his current circumstances.

After setting up his area he looked to his scroll for the time. The night was still young, so he decided to explore the campus. It would be useful to familiarise himself with the layout before classes started.

He wandered around for a few hours, noticing some others do the same. On his little adventure he came to the cliffs overlooking the river that divided the school and the city. He stopped to close his eyes and breathe in the salty air. It was a nice location, somewhere he could come to get some time to himself. He had no doubt that he would be using it in the future.

He started to make his way back to the sleeping area and down one of the many halls he found himself in, someone bumped into him and dropped their scroll.

"Sorry," the boy mumbled, bending down to pick up the dropped device.

"No worries," Devon replied, "You okay?"

The boy looked up at him, a mix of confusion and worry in his blue eyes. "Uh, no... I mean, maybe... wait, um... do you, by any chance, know where the sleeping area is for the first years?"

Devon raised an eyebrow, "You know it was the room that literally everyone went to after Ozpin's speech? Follow me, I was just on my way back."

The boy chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head, "Thanks, the name's Jaune by the way."

"Devon," he greeted. He was making a lot of unnecessary social interactions today.

The two lulled into silence after that, which apparently was too much for Jaune as he broke it not a minute later.

"So Devon, what are your thoughts after your first day here at Beacon?" He asked, as they made their way to the sleeping area.

"It looks like a good place to train and learn I guess. I wish we didn't have to form teams though," Devon replied dryly.

Jaune was silent for a moment and looked a bit nervous, "Yeah? What makes you say that?"

"I don't work well with other people," he replied firmly, shrugging it off, "I'm here to kill Grimm, and die.

Jaune stopped at that, halting in his tracks as he looked at him concernedly. "You want to die fighting the Grimm?"

Devon turned to face the blonde who was now behind him. "Kill them all or die trying."

Jaune shook his head, "You can't want to die. If you don't value your own life enough, I hope you meet someone here who changes that."

Devon continued to stand where he was and didn't say anything. Jaune sighed after a moment and looked around, realising that they had arrived at the massive slumber party.

"Thanks for helping me. I hope you'll enjoy your time here at Beacon. See you around Devon." Jaune offered his hand. Devon shook it and nodded once as the boy wandered off to find one of the left over spots in the room.

Day Zero and things could be going better, but overall he had pretty much managed to avoid any confrontations or prolonged interactions. The same could not be said for the yellow and red girls he met earlier, who were now engaged in a rather disruptive argument with the Schnee girl and a mysterious black beauty. He decided that he might as well try to get some sleep. Luckily his chosen spot was far enough away from the particularly rowdy students that he could hopefully get a decent rest. No doubt he was going to need as much energy as he could muster tomorrow.


	2. Hunting

**Hopefully this will be a decent initiation chapter, again not trying to do anything fancy and trying to work it in with canon. Review, comment, critique and most importantly, enjoy!**

**Editted 16/8/2016.**

* * *

Devon woke up the next morning to a weight on his chest, and he groggily opened his eyes to see a blurry figure above him. As his eyes focused he immediately recognised the killer smile and bright green eyes.

"Good morning gorgeous," Gale sung down to him. She was sitting on his chest, her legs draped either side of him and her hands planted either side of his head, holding her up. It was at this moment that Devon realised how close their faces were. Avoiding her eyes he looked around the room. Almost everyone had already left and some were already kitted out in their combat gear. "Breakfast is only being served for another half hour so I figured I'd get you up. Not a morning person eh?"

"No. And thank you," Devon yawned, trying to rise but finding himself unable to do so. The girl had him pinned.

"Not a problem handsome," she smiled, a knowing look in her eyes.

Devon just lay there for a while, expecting the girl to move off of him. In the end he had waited about two minutes before he decided he needed food. "May I rise now?"

Gale smirked at him, "Why are you asking me for permission? I'm not your master... unless you're into that sort of thing..."

Devon sighed, deciding action was the only way to get through to this girl, so he placed his hands on her thighs and prepared to lift.

"Hey, easy there big boy, somebody's keen. In that case let me show y-hey!" Gale started before Devon flipped her over his head, sprawling her on the ground behind him. He quickly got up, collected his clothes and made his way to the nearby bathroom.

As he entered he noticed the place was much cleaner than he expected, considering it was a school full of teenagers. He changed quickly, but not quickly enough apparently, as Gale waltzed into the men's as he was just pulling his pants on. The only other guy in the room looked nervously over at the newcomer before quickly making his way out the door.

"You're not supposed to be in here," Devon stated, continuing to dress himself after the interruption.

"But you don't mind right? After all, there's no-one else in here," Gale started to saunter over to him, "We could always have a little bit of... fun."

She moved her body close to his as she said the final word but not close enough to actually cause them to touch. Devon just rolled his eyes and moved past her, having finished changing. As he made it to the door he heard a humph of frustration from behind him.

He made his way to the cafeteria, took a tray and loaded it up with food. He knew today was bound to be a busy one and didn't want to tackle it on an empty stomach. While he may not be a morning person, Devon was definitely a breakfast person. After pouring a large glass of OJ, he made his way over to an isolated table and began to dig in. About halfway through the meal he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"Hey, Devon right?" Devon looked over his shoulder to see the scraggly blonde he met the night before, a tray of food in his hands, "Mind if I sit?"

Devon examined the boy for a moment and shrugged approval, returning to his meal. Jaune set his tray down next to him and sat. "Thanks," he offered, "I don't really know anyone here and you're the only person who doesn't make me feel completely awkward."

Devon raised an eyebrow to this and replied, "No, problem," before filling his mouth with egg. They ate in silence for a little while before it apparently became too awkward for the blonde.

"So! I hear that teams are going to be assigned today," he commented. Devon stopped mid-bite on a sausage. He had really hoped it would be a while before he had to make any meaningful interactions with his classmates. He knew he would have to be part of a team eventually, but wished it didn't have to be so soon. "Guess that whole 'I work better alone' thing isn't going to do you much good today, huh?"

"I guess not," Devon said blankly, returning to his half-eaten sausage.

"Hey, well if you don't have anyone picked out already maybe we cou-"

"YOU!" Jaune was cut off by what Devon recognised as the blonde girl from the day before's voice. He looked over his shoulder to see the beauty marching a warpath towards him, her eyes red and her hair seemingly ablaze. Devon quickly polished off the last of his toast and swung his legs over the other side of the bench he was seated on, resting his back against the table. He did this just in time to have a finger jabbed into his chest and the air around him sizzle.

Yang was now glaring at him with her red eyes, a literal arms length away. "Talk," she growled.

Devon did his best to keep his face reactionless, "Excuse me?"

"I have been informed that you have rejected the advances of a certain gorgeous babe this morning. Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, has ever done such a stupid thing like that before. Care to explain your reasoning behind saying no to this?" She gestured with her free hand to the girl that had suddenly replaced Jaune beside him on the bench.

"Hey there," Gale greeted sweetly, flashing her magnificent smile. Devon stared at her for a moment before returning his attention to Yang.

"Sorry, but I was hoping to avoid as much human interaction as possible while I'm here. And she seemed like a lot of it."

Devon watched as small fires seemed to ignite in Yang's eyes and she raised her fist. Just before she brought it down to connect with his face, Devon leaned forward and brought his hand to her hip, lifting her ever so slightly as he moved past her from the bench. The result of this was Yang effectively throwing herself over the table as Devon began to casually make his way out of the cafeteria. Once he rounded the corner he promptly legged it down the hallway. There was no way he was going to escape karma for that little display.

* * *

Devon now found himself looking over a wooded landscape, lined up with the other first year students on a series of metal platforms. He was dressed in his combat gear, light padded armour covering his chest, arms and legs. He never liked to go heavy, his fighting style was all about flexibility, maneuverability and balance. He idly shifted the blades strapped to his back, one hilt just above his right shoulder and the other down near his left hip. Not many people understood his fighting style but it worked for him so he didn't really care. He knew most students at beacon had some sort of multifunctioning ability to their weapons, like a sniper-scythe or a sword-spear-rifle. The only ability his swords had was to imbue their blades and strikes with dust. Only fire and air suited his style, superheating the blade to cut through most materials and creatures and extending the range of his strikes respectively.

After Ozpin had finished explaining the activity they were about to attempt Devon readied himself for the launch he knew was coming. He glanced over at the other students around him. He received a small wave from the small girl known as Ruby, a glare from Yang and Gale blew him a kiss accompanied by a wave.

He lowered his center of gravity as he heard the gears below him move, and a second later he was in the air, soaring over the forest. He opened his arms and let the fresh air caress his face for a moment before reaching behind him and drawing his weapons. With one blade gripped in his right hand and the other in reverse in his left, Devon began to spin himself mid-flight. He then activated the air dust in the blades and sent shockwave after shockwave outwards, slowing himself down enough to then roll off the rest of his momentum.

He took a moment to loosen his muscles, listening out for any other students, or any Grimm. Maybe if he found a relic before he found a partner he wouldn't have to deal with a team. He could show the teachers that he was perfectly fine as a lone wolf and didn't need anyone else. But at the same time he wanted to destroy as many Grimm as he possibly could along the way.

Before he could move out however, he heard a rustling behind him. He turned to face the noise, switching the blade in his left to air, to deal with the possible threat from range, and the one in his right to fire, preparing for a close encounter. He need not have done so however, as the figure that emerged from the shrubbery was that of a girl, and not a beast. Before Devon could close his eyes, thus avoiding the eye-contact rule of partnership, he found himself locked in the mesmerizing beauty of the bright green orbs staring back at him.

"Fuck," he grumbled before sheathing his blades and turning to walk in the opposite direction. He heard footsteps following behind him and quickened his pace. Maybe if he ignored her she would just leave him alone. He soon found that he was never going to catch a break as Gale drew level with him.

"It must be fate!" she cheered, "Don't look so sad 'D', we'll have fun! I can hold my own in a fight. I get the vibe that you prefer to fight solo and I'm cool with that, in fact we may work well together in that respect. Plus our natural chemistry means that we should get along great!"

Devon stopped in his tracks and brought his hands up to rub at his face. Out of all of the first year students at Beacon he had to end up with the one person he wanted to be around the least. Well, he might just have to deal with it for the time being and maybe he can sort something out with the teachers later. He turned to Gale who had stopped beside him, "You go find a relic, I'm going hunting."

Gale narrowed her eyes slightly before quickly pulling out her handgun, pointing it straight at him, and firing.

Devon's reaction time was anything but slow, so when he didn't even flinch after a bullet flew right past his ear, he clearly wasn't worried for his health. Much.

To be completely honest, the sheer shock and surprise of the situation had just paralyzed him. After he realised that the bullet hadn't actually hit him, and that the _thud_ wasn't his own body hitting the ground, he let out the breath he didn't know he had been holding. He blinked, his eyes wide and locked on those of the girl before him. A smirk had crept onto her features and she moved towards him, bringing her lips close to his ear, "Relax 'D', I would want to damage the goods."

She moved past him and Devon relaxed his muscles and turned to see what had happened. They both watched as the carcass of a small Ursa began to disintegrate into the air.

"The mother's probably not far off," Gale re-holstered her gun and turned to him, "I get that you wanna go solo. Add me on your scroll. When I find a relic I'll buzz you and you can come find me."

Devon realised she had accepted his earlier request and nodded. They pulled out their scrolls and exchanged contacts. Gale put her scroll away and moved towards him, wrapping him up in her arms. Devon stiffened at the contact, but the hug didn't last long.

"Happy hunting," she said, turning and heading off into the trees. Devon just stood there in shock for a little while, registering what had just happened. Eventually he shook his head to clear it. She had been kind enough to grant him his wish, maybe she wasn't too bad after all. Devon sat down and waited for the inevitable arrival of the slain Ursa's mother.

He wasn't waiting for long. Almost five minutes later he heard a rumbling deep within the trees and stood to prepare for the monster. It was just in time too, as the trees burst, splintering into a thousand pieces that scattered around the small clearing. The monster towered before him, rearing up on its hind legs and letting out a roar. Devon shifted, ready to dodge the oncoming strike, but when he did move he noticed a distinct lack of Ursa claws where he had been moments before. He looked up in confusion, and noticed that the Ursa was completely ignoring him. It had started nuzzling the ground where it's cub had fallen and raised its head to look around. When its gaze passed over Devon without even a pause, he became infuriated, and even more so when it started to pad off into the trees again.

"I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU!" he yelled, sprinting after it. The beast paused and raised its head towards the noise, only for it to be separated from its body a moment later. The head rolled away and the body collapsed with a thud, moments later it started to disintegrate just like its baby had done minutes before.

Devon took a couple of deep breaths to curb his temper. After calming down he decided to start moving again, taking off into the forest to find more prey. He jumped and slashed one of his blades downwards, using the burst from the air dust to launch himself up onto a nearby branch. Using this technique he leapt from tree to tree, moving through the forest. Whenever he saw a creature of Grimm, he dropped down on it, slaying it in a swipe or two before launching back up into the trees. He slaughtered Beowolves, Usai, Boarbatusks and even the occasional small Deathstalker. After the full year of non-stop training he'd had, it wasn't much of a challenge.

Eventually he made his way to a cliff overlooking a chasm. As he began searching for a way across he heard explosions and gunfire in the distance. He looked around for the source of the noise and recognised the giant shadow of a Nevermore. He noticed small flashes of colourful light around it, guessing that they were the explosions he was hearing. He turned back to the chasm before him. Whoever was fighting that thing probably had it under control. No need to intervene.

Seeing no other way across Devon decided he could launch himself using his blades over the gap. He jogged back from the edge and prepared for the jump. As he readied himself, a spinning disc came out from the trees to his right, barely missing him, before bouncing off a tree and flying straight back the way it came. Devon turned to face the possible threat and readied himself for a fight. At that moment two girls leapt out of the underbrush and ran straight towards him. Instead of attacking him however they both ran up next to him, stood, and turned to face the way they came.

Devon glanced at the newcomers, recognising them as the twins he met at the opening ceremony. Shrugging he faced the same direction as them and waited for whatever was coming. Both girls were panting hard.

"Creeps...a lot...of them. Too...many..." one of them said between pants, pointing back the way they had come. It was then that Devon felt the ground begin to shake, gradually getting more intense as whatever was coming for them neared. He heard the rumble of a stampede and gripped his blades tighter.

"You two take cover, I've got this," he said calmly.

The girls both looked at him in disbelief. "You can't take that many. Not by yourself," one of them reasoned.

"I can hold my own, at least until you rest up a bit," Devon took a step forward, "Give me two minutes. If I haven't slaughtered them all by then, you can give me a hand."

The girls looked to each other, apparently having a silent conversation. "Okay," the same one said finally, "two minutes, then we help."

Devon just nodded and the girls made their way over to a fallen log to take cover. Devon considered the fight he was about to engage in. From what the twins had said, there were a large number of Creeps approaching. This was backed up by the shaking he was currently feeling, and the loud rumble that was quickly getting louder. So, how to handle this? He weighed his options and after a moment decided on a plan. The first of the stampede burst through the trees and Devon switched both blades to air as he began to slash at the beasts, sending slicing waves of air towards them, and every wave that hit promptly cut the receiving body in two.

After a few seconds, a large number of Grimm had arrived and Devon decided to start his plan. He sent off a few more swipes and then turned to run for the chasm. He heard the monsters behind him but didn't dare look back. He made it to the cliff and threw himself off, leaping over the abyss. He rolled in the air and looked back the way he came and he watched as the Grimm began to barrel over the edge, even the ones that managed to stop in time were knocked over by ones behind it.

He allowed himself a small smile and readied his blades for the push he needed to make it to the other side. He swung behind himself and he began to curve down into a fall. Devon frowned before realisation hit him. He was out of dust.

Just as he was about to accept his fate as a blood stain on the bottom of the chasm, a cord shot out of the trees above him and came down to him. He sheathed his weapons and reached out for the possible lifeline, gripping it hard. He tensed as the slack became taught and he started to swing towards the cliff face, bringing his feet up to cushion the collision. He looked down at the deep abyss that would have been his destination had the cord not come to save him. After deciding that the cord itself was probably not sentient, and that there was most likely someone at the other end of it, Devon found a foothold in the rocks and secured himself by wrapping it around his waist. He tugged twice at it and slowly started to walk up the side of the cliff as he was winched up. Whoever was on the other end clearly had a lot of upper body strength.

He reached the top, pulled himself up onto the ledge and rolled away from it. He breathed in deeply and closed his eyes, trying to calm the adrenaline rushing through his body after the near death experience. He reopened them as he breathed out, only to catch it again when he noticed the two twins standing over him, their arms folded and faces smirking. He quickly sat up, releasing the rest of his breath. He looked them each over, noticing now that one of them had the cord that saved him. Each end was hanging either side of her hips, with the bulk of it behind her, so he couldn't see how long it actually was.

Devon got to his feet and brushed himself off. He looked to the cord girl and gave her a nod. "Thanks...uh...Raven was it?" he asked, noticing her unique eyes.

"You're very welcome," she offered smiling.

Devon nodded again, "And Jade right?" The girl nodded and smiled back, she couldn't seem to hold his gaze for more than a second or two at a time though.

At that moment his scroll began to ring. He pulled it out and answered, seeing Gale's face fill the screen. "Got a relic 'D'. Time to come find meeeeee!" she sang. Devon sighed. No more Grimm slaying for now, he had made a promise after all.

"I'll be right there," he replied, before shutting off the call. He turned to the girls, "Do you have a relic yet?" Both of their faces lit up and Raven pulled something out of a pouch at her waist. She held it out for him to see. It was a chess piece, a pawn, gold in colour. Devon, raised an eyebrow, "Chess pieces?"

"Yeah I don't get it either," Raven admitted, "but hey, we got it. Although, moments after we did, those Creeps turned up and drove us away. I guess it must be clear now if your partner managed to claim one. Come on, we'll show you the way there. It's the least we can do after you basically saved us, right Jade?" The timid girl nodded and started to move in what must have been the direction of the relics. Raven followed and motioned for him to do the same.

They made their way through the trees, surprisingly never running into any Grimm on the way but Devon guessed that many people had come this way if the relics were nearby and they had probably all been taken care of. Good riddance too, he mentally added. After a few silent minutes they made it to a clearing and he saw the ruins and pedestals where the relics no doubt had rested, all of them clear now.  
Devon felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to face down the barrel of a gun. He reeled back instinctively, only to be greeted by laughter.

"Relaaaaaaax 'D'!" Gale teased as she finished laughing, "Think fast."

She threw something to him and he caught it reflexively and looked at the item in his hand. It was a chess pawn, gold like the twins'. He looked back up to Gale, "Why a pawn?"

She looked at the ground now and talked in a quiet voice, "It was the only one left..."

Devon's eyes widened for a moment before he collected himself. It was only natural considering only one of the two partners was actively looking for the relics. "Well, better a pawn than nothing at all," he said. Her eyes met his and she flashed her brilliant smile.

"Absolutely!" she cheered, her mood switching instantly. It seemed there was no consistency with this girl, "Now to head back to Beacon for some team bonding! I mean sex", she added after seeing the blank look on his face. He slapped both hands to his face before glancing at the two girls next to him, hoping they hadn't heard. His hopes were dashed though as he noticed the blush and stern look on Jade's and Raven's faces respectively. He returned his gaze to Gale, a disappointed look on his face, met only by a wink and her smile.

Devon sighed.


	3. Restless

**Punched this one out nice and quickly, hopefully that doesn't show in the quality. Hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it. Enjoy, review, criticise and give tips!**

**Rewritten as of 17/6/2015.**

* * *

"Russel Thrush, Cardin Winchester, Dove Bronzewing, Sky Lark. The four of you retrieved the black bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team Cardinal, led by... Cardin Winchester!" Professor Ozpin announced. The four boys then began to leave the stage. That team was definitely going to cause trouble, Devon knew just by looking at the members, especially their leader.

He watched as the teams were formed, watching the members for teams Juniper and Ruby receive their team names and leaders. Devon was just as surprised as everyone else when Jaune was assigned as leader. The boy who couldn't even find his way to the sleeping area on the first night was to lead his own team for the next four years. Well, he's stuck with it now, maybe he can learn?

Devon had already been assigned into his team, Grudge (GRDJ). Gale was assigned as leader, which didn't surprise him at all. She was confident, determined and from what he could tell, despite her 'charming' attitude, mature. As they were dismissed from the assembly Devon turned to examine his team. He still didn't want to be a part of it and was going to find Ozpin as soon as he could to try and get out of it, but as far as teammates go, he could live with this lot if it came to that.

Gale looked down as her scroll beeped. "Well gang, we have our room! Let's roll!" she turned and strolled with purpose towards the dorms. The twins fell into step behind her and Devon lagged a bit behind. As they made their way through the halls Devon decided now was as good a time as any to go find Ozpin.

"Hey, I need to talk to Ozpin. I'll meet you guys there later," he called out to them before breaking off at an intersection.

"Hey!" Devon stopped in his tracks and turned to Gale who had called out, she and the twins had stopped.

"What is it?" he asked meeting he questioning gaze.

She stood silent for a moment, examining him, before speaking out, "How are you going to find the dorm? I'm the only one with the location."

Devon's eyes went wide for a split second before he brought himself under control. As he never had the intention of returning, he hadn't considered the need to know where the dorm was. He didn't want to have his true intentions revealed to his team, any emotional conflict would be better avoided, so he tried to worm his way out of it. "Uh, you can just send it to me?" he replied weakly, "Look, I really gotta go."

Gale eyed him for a moment more, her face then brightened. "Hey, we're almost there. Let's just get to the dorm, then we can leave these two to arrange the room while you and I go see Ozpin. How does that sound, partner?" she offered in a cheerful tone.

Devon took a step backwards away from the group. He didn't like where this was going. "Uh.. no it's okay. I just have something to sort out. I'll be back," he lied.

Gale, sensing that something was up, took a couple of steps towards him, a concerned look on her face. "You sure? The dorm is literally right arou-"

"NO! STOP!" Devon shouted surprising everyone, including himself, "Please, I just need to do this." He took a few more steps away as he said this.

Gale looked at him with a shocked look on her face and a bit of hurt showing in her green eyes. "Well, okay then," she said quietly, "I'll send you the location."

Devon breathed in slowly, trying to calm himself after his outburst. "Thank you," he replied sincerely, feeling a weight come off of his shoulders, "I'll see you later," he added turning and walking away, not daring to look back. He didn't want to see the looks on their faces.

He made his way down the hallway and turned around a corner, before realising that he actually had no idea where he was or was headed. His exploration last night had mainly been of the grounds and not the buildings, which in hindsight would have been a better idea. He knew Ozpin's office was at the top of the tower in the center of the campus, however he had no clue as to how to get there.

These concerns were of no consequence in the end as a familiar man of grey and green rounded the corner of an intersection before him. He silently thanked whatever deity was out there, but his prayers were interrupted by the man walking towards him, "Ah, Mr Aster, just the man I was looking for."

Devon frowned in confusion, "Wait, you were looking for me?"

"Yes," the calm man answered, "I have no doubt you wish to talk regarding the assignment of your team. Is that correct?"

Devon just looked at the man dumbfounded. How had he known that he wanted to leave his team? Was he psychic? Or just really good at reading people? Either way his internal questioning was interrupted by the professor again.

"I know of your history Mr Aster. I know what happened to you and your village, what happened to your family, and why you decided to enrol in my school." Devon remained silent. This man knew everything it seemed so he just waited for him to continue.

"I must tell you that I have seen this before. Under similar but not equal circumstances I must admit, but the fact remains the same. You wish to destroy the creatures of Grimm, annihilating any evidence of them and their existence, is this correct?" Devon just nodded, "And you wish to do so on your own, unimpeded by others. Is this also true?" Devon nodded again, "Then allow me to inform you that this path is one that will only lead to self-destruction and loss, more than you have already experienced. Now you may claim that you do not care for your own life and that may very well be true, however as a student in my school I cannot allow such catastrophe to fall upon you. Therefore, your request to leave your team is denied," Devon opened his mouth to speak, "DENIED, Mr Aster. I hope your team and your time here will change your mind, but for now please return to your dorm. No doubt you have unpacking to attend to and classes begin in the morning."

Devon just stared angrily at the man, fuming in silence. "Good night Devon. I hope sleep finds you tonight. I understand it does not come easily for a boy such as yourself." And with that the professor turned and left back the way he came.

Devon just stood there, fists clenched and frown furious. How DARE he! How could the man suggest that his intentions be wrong!? He had no right to deny him the future he wished for himself. He didn't know who he was or the struggles he'd been through. Only he knew who he was, and he knew what he wanted.

Turning on the spot in frustration he stormed back the way he came, before noticing the form at the corner he had come around earlier. Gale was leaning against the wall, arms crossed with a mad frown on her face. Devon just brushed past her not even giving her a second glance and rounded the corner. She must have heard Ozpin's speech. He wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone else's problems right now.

He stopped moving then as he realised he had no idea where his dorm was. He groaned. There was no way he was asking Gale for directions now and decided he wanted the night to himself anyway. So, he made his way to the stairwell, climbing up until he reached the rooftop.

He opened the door into the chilly night air. Devon was never bothered by the cold, he barely felt it's sharp bite. Heat he couldn't stan, but the cold, that is where he felt most at peace. He sat against the wall, the cold brick soothing his rage a little. He got comfortable and pulled up the facemask from around his neck, covering the lower half of his face with it.

Devon's anger turned to sadness as thoughts of the mask's original owner crossed through his mind. He let a tear roll down from his eye to then be soaked into the soft material. He closed his eyes and tried to get some unlikely sleep. He was more tired than he realised in actuality, after an exhausting day in the forest, and he passed out almost instantly, his mind filling with dreams and nightmares of his past.

* * *

Devon woke as the harsh light of the sun broke over the edge of the rooftop. He squinted his eyes momentarily to take in his surroundings before deciding it was way too early to get up. He pulled the blanket up to his chin and tried to fall back to sleep.

His eyes shot open and looked down at himself. Sure enough there was a blanket resting across his body, one he clearly remembered never bringing with him the night before. It was then that he noticed the weight on his shoulder.

The weight turned out to be the head of a girl with jet black hair. Devon watched the sleeping girl for a moment wondering why she was there before looking past her and noticing another head of black and one of blonde. He guessed one of them had found him last night, but why they were all sleeping out here with him he couldn't fathom.

He knew Gale would have gone back to the dorm last night and told the twins what he had tried to do, so shouldn't they be furious, mad that he had tried to leave them? Shouldn't they have left him out in the cold to suffer as punishment?

His thoughts were interrupted however as the figure next to him stirred. He watched as she opened her eyes slowly, lifting her head off of his shoulder. Then she froze, her jade eyes going wide as they met his.

"S-sorry," she mumbled shyly, "I-I- didn't mean to-"

"It's fine," Devon replied reassuringly, his voice muffled by the face mask he was wearing. He yawned and stretched deciding he probably wouldn't go back to sleep now and might as well start waking up. "Hey," he started, turning to the awoken twin, "why are you guys up here? I'd have thought you'd leave me out here after what I did."

The girl looked away from him nervously, a light blush coming to her face, "W-w-well at first we were kind of upset. You'd barely met us and decided that you didn't like us. That was pretty unfair. B-but then we decided to ask you ourselves. Gale seemed pretty angry, she is your partner after all and it probably hurt her the most, so she was probably making it sound worse than it was. So, we set out to find you and I eventually found you up here. You were already asleep so I didn't want to disturb you, but you looked cold so I went back to the dorm and got the blanket. I messaged the other two and told them where I'd found you," her blush had become much brighter by the end of her explanation.

Devon took this information in for a moment. This girl seemed really intelligent and logical despite her timid nature. Maybe there was more to each of them than he initially gathered. Still her explanation left something unanswered, "But how come you're all here now? Why not just go back to the warm dorm and comfortable beds?"

The girl was just looking straight at her lap now, her face bright red, "I-I... w-w-well... we uh... I thought you looked lonely..." the last part came out as a whisper, and Devon barely caught it.

He was speechless. No-one had aver called him that before, he knew everyone was thinking it, but no-one had ever put it to words. "Oh..." was all he could muster. He looked at the girl, she was still blushing hard, and pulled down his face mask. "Thank you," he said simply, allowing a small smile onto his face.

Jade's eyes lifted to his, her expression changing from nervous to calm and she returned his gesture, "No problem. Knowing my sister she probably just convinced Gale to go along with it, hence why they're here."

It was then that Raven stirred, opening her eyes slowly and looking around. She looked down suddenly at the space between her and Gale and pulled back after a moment, a small blush reaching her cheeks. She had been snuggled into their leader, her head resting on the blonde's shoulder.

Gale was jolted awake by the sudden movement, Raven quickly shifted herself, using the small commotion to distract from her actions. Gale stretched and yawned, taking in her environment as well, before turning to the others next to her. Her green eyes met Devon's dark blue ones, and she glared into them for a moment before standing up, knocking the blanket off of the others, and exiting the rooftop through the door to the stairwell.

After a moment Raven sighed, looking down at her scroll before turning to her sister, "We should probably follow her. Class starts in two hours and we need to get ready," she suggested before looking over to Devon, "You too."

She stood up, arching her back in a stretch, and Devon had to turn his head away to avoid any awkward stares. He turned back as he heard footsteps moving away. He then had to suppress the sensation in his crotch as his eyes were met with the magnificent view of her slim, toned body sauntering towards the door.

After the door clicked shut, he let out the breath he realised he was holding, startling Jade a little. She looked at him, seeing him shift his position slightly and hearing his slightly increased breathing, confirming her thoughts. She let out a quiet giggle and a smile spread across her face.

Devon met her gaze and immediately looked away in embarrassment, having been caught ogling her sister. Jade leaned in closer to him before speaking quietly into his ear, "You know we're twins right?"

At that Devon froze, his entire body tensing. This was quite a change from the quiet, timid girl he was used to. A welcome distraction came in the form of a tone from both of their scrolls. [From: Gale; Subject: Team Meeting; Message: Now.]

At that they both looked at each other nervously. Gale clearly wanted to talk about the previous night, and they both knew it was likely to get heated. However, fearing what would happen if they didn't show more than the talk itself, they both rose. Jade folded up the blanket and they made their way back to the dorm.

Devon made sure to stay with Jade as he didn't know where the dorm was, and they walked in a nervous silence all through the halls to their room. Jade pulled out her scroll and held it to the panel next to the door. After a small click she opened it and they made their way inside.

Closing the door behind him Devon turned to take in the room he would be living in for the next four years. It wasn't too spacious but it was large enough. He noted a few books and possessions lining the shelves and bedside tables around the room. He guessed that the twins must have had enough time to unpack a few things before Gale undoubtedly stormed in. Speaking of the girl, she was standing in the middle of the room with her arms folded and a stern look on her face.

"Take a seat," she said, motioning to the bed in front of her. Devon gulped and obeyed her command, sitting down on the edge of it. The twins moved to either side of their leader and looked down at Devon, Raven with a serious look on her face and Jade with a softer more curious one. Gale opened her mouth to speak, only to close it again without uttering a sound. She did this a couple of times before eventually letting out a breath through clenched teeth.

"One chance," she started, "One chance, right now to explain your actions. We will not speak until the end of it and you will tell the truth, nothing but. As mad as I am I will try to remain objective so long as you honour me... honour _us_, with the truth. Seem fair?" Devon just nodded. They did deserve the truth, he had hurt them, and he was now stuck with them for the next four years. He wanted them to understand at the very least, he did not expect forgiveness. "Good, now talk."

Devon took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I'm from Rush, a small village to the south of Vale. I don't know if you've heard about it but there was a Grimm attack there about a year ago. I was in Vale at the time so, I wasn't caught in the slaughter that occurred, but I was far from unaffected. Nobody survived the attack. Nobody. Every man, every woman and every child, dead. Even the Huntsmen and Huntresses protecting them perished. The town was completely overrun, buildings toppled and streets destroyed. My family is gone. My dad, my little sister and even my mother, who was one of the most powerful Huntresses in the town, were slaughtered by the monsters.

I was not allowed back to my home, it had been sealed off, claimed to be to dangerous for anyone besides a fully fledged Huntsman or Huntress. I was in Vale because I was catching up with an old childhood friend that I hadn't seen in years. His dad was a Huntsman, and he joined the search party that was sent to Rush. He went for me, to find whatever he could of my family's belongings to bring them back to me. Amongst the ruin he recovered two things, this," he pulled the face mask up slightly to show them before lowering it again, "my father's face mask, and the blades I carry, Aldebaran, my mother's grandfather's weapons. It was then that I made a decision: I will become a Huntsman, to return to my home so that I may mourn my family properly, and to become strong enough to end the Grimm. I will destroy them so that no-one else has to go through the loss and pain I have. I will slaughter every Grimm I find, just as they did my family! And I will do so until the day they kill me and I join my family again!" Devon's voice had risen slightly near the end and he closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm down.

"Now as to why I wanted to leave this team? Well I never wanted to be in one in the first place. The only reason I came to Beacon, was so that I could become a Huntsman and become strong enough to kill any Grimm I am not already strong enough to. A team was something I had hoped to find my way around, but it seems that is not to be the case. I wished to do this alone, no bonds, no friends and therefore no more loss and no more pain. I did not mean to insult any of you and apologise profusely if I have done so. I may want to be a loner, but that does not mean I wish to be an asshole. I do not expect forgiveness, but I hope that you can now at least understand my actions."

Devon watched the girls closely for their reactions, and he was surprised at what he saw. Raven had a worried look on her face, almost like a mother concerned for her child, and Jade had a tear sliding down her cheek. But what caught Devon's attention was the frown on Gale's face. It was not one of anger, it was softer than that, concern maybe? He didn't have time to dwell on it as she spoke up.

"Stand up," she ordered. Devon did so, never breaking eye contact with her. After a moment her arms unfolded and she stepped towards him. He was not ready for what came next and froze as her arms wrapped around his back and she laid her head on his shoulder, pulling him into a tight hug.

He was confused, to say the least. He was sure Gale would have still been mad at him, or even just understood his reasons but not been happy with it. The fact that she was consoling him, even after how he had treated her and considering they had only met two days ago, was beyond him.

Despite his confusion though, he realised... it felt nice. He had gone so long without any meaningful human contact and even longer without affectionate ones, that he had forgotten how nice it felt to be wrapped up in another's arms and feel the support and comfort flowing from their body to yours. Eventually he relaxed and returned the hug, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. He looked over to the two twins who now both had tears in their eyes. Devon smiled slightly and allowed his own eyes to become watery, seeing the others return the smile.


	4. School

**Hey guys! So a slightly shorter chapter for this one, still building characters and all that. Should start to pick up in a chapter or two so bear with it. Enjoy.**

**Rewritten as of 19/6/2015.**

* * *

The rest of the morning had gone by relatively cheerily and uneventfully. After the emotional session in the morning they had all showered, changed and headed down to the cafeteria to get a bite to eat before their first class, deciding they would finish unpacking after classes.

Devon explained that he didn't want anybody else to know about his past and for it to just stay between their team. Gale and the twins agreed under two conditions: no more secrets and that he would try and make some friends.

They got their food and sat down at one of the many tables. They chatted a little as they ate, telling each other a about their lives before coming to Beacon. The twins had very strict and demanding parents, both of whom were an accomplished Huntsman and Huntress in their own right, and they had been trained and schooled at home by some of the best teachers around, even some professors from the nearby combat schools. They had easily gained entrance to Beacon and were excited to be spending time away from their limited and strict lifestyle.

Gale had a simpler story. She was best friends with Yang and they both sought adventure. After graduating from Signal they immediately set out to enrol at Beacon, knowing that many an adventure awaited them there.

"Plus, my parents don't have any say on the _friends_ I make here," she added, throwing a wink at a guy down the table from them.

Raven, ever the voice of reason, spoke up, "Maybe we should have some ground rules about _making friends_. We do all share the same room." Devon noted that Raven had a more motherly vibe than her twin, almost like she were Jade's mother with the other acting somewhat child-like.

"Yeah," Jade added, "I don't want to walk in on any... shenanigans, if they can be avoided."

"Hmmm, fair enough," Gale, thought for a moment, "How about I give you guys a buzz if I'm... busy? Or if I intend to be any time soon. That way you can avoid any..." she looked to Jade with a grin on her face, "shenanigans..."

Jade quickly looked away, trying terribly to hide the blush on her face. "T-that sounds reasonable," she squeaked.

"How will we know when you're done though?" Raven asked.

"Easy," Gale perked up, "I'll just buzz you again! Problem solved! You have any problems with this, 'D'?"

All of the girls looked to Devon who was sitting quietly in his seat. He wasn't used to just talking about sex so casually. His parents had discouraged casual sex, saying it was 'meant for those who loved each other'. Even so, despite their opinion he had 'done the deed' a couple of times before his coming to Beacon, once after getting drunk for the first time at a party and another with his one and only girlfriend. "So long as we have notice. Should be fine," he commented, causing Gale to grow a beaming smile.

"Awesome!" she cheered, "Same rule goes for everyone. I don't know how much you guys get out, but we all have our needs right?" she added, winking at Jade, who was still blushing profusely.

"We're not all animals like you," Raven cut in, a disapproving frown on her face.

Gale just laughed lightly, "Hmm, maybe not you, but how about you 'D'?" she eyed him slyly, eliciting an amused grunt from the boy, "I'll take that as a maybe." At that Gale looked down to her scroll, noticing the time. "Well, team Grudge it is almost time for class. So, let our first day of our awesome new lives begin!"

Gale's enthusiasm lasted all of about fifteen minutes into their first class, quickly losing interest in the portly professor's ramblings. She had instead taken to annoying Devon as he tried to pay attention to any good point the teacher may actually give. "Devonnnnnnn," she moaned tugging at his sleeve, "I'm booooooored."

"Shush, I'm listening," he shushed, glaring at her. She just returned a pout before laying her head on her arms letting out a _hmph_. Devon just continued to watch the rambling man at the front of the room.

After another ten minutes he realised the man was going nowhere but sideways with his speech and leaned back in his chair with a defeated sigh. He turned to the girl next to him, her green eyes pleading. Devon just held her gaze for a moment before giving up.

"Tell you what, after class today, once we've finished setting up the dorm, we can have some fun. You can decide what we do and I'll go along with whatever. BUT..." he added after a cheeky grin made its way onto her face, "we don't break any school rules, AND you don't annoy me for the rest of the day. Deal?"

She just nodded with a cheeky giggle before she pulled out her scroll and began texting. She wouldn't let Devon see what it was she was writing but he had no doubt she was concocting some extravagant plan for their afternoon activities. He groaned before returning his attention to the class. He was regretting this decision already.

* * *

After their final class, 'History and Applications of Dust', Gale hurriedly dragged Devon back to their dorm, the twins trailing behind. When they arrived she began flinging clothes and personal items all over the place. "What are you doing?" Devon asked, dodging a shirt that flew past his head.

"Unpacking!" she replied, cheerily continuing. This time Devon failed to move fast enough and another item of clothing hit him square in the face. He removed the rather skimpy pair of underwear from his head and threw them back at her.

"Well can you do it a little less... flingy?" he asked. She caught the pair without looking up and dunked it into an open drawer.

"Come on! You should be unpacking too! The sooner we're done the sooner you can meet your da-we can have fun!" she continued unpacking, pretending her slip up had never happened. Devon raised an eyebrow, which she caught when she glanced at him over her shoulder and stopped. "Wait, you did bring stuff with you right?" she looked to him with concern in her eyes.

Devon just sat down on the only bed that had not yet been claimed and looked down at his feet. He knew what was coming next. "Of course," he said quietly, but Gale continued to stare at him with those concerned orbs, "My combat gear."

Her face flashed with a surprised look for a moment before a determined expression took its place. Gale stood up and turned to the wardrobe she had been throwing clothes into. After a bit of searching she pulled out a dark grey hoodie, a black T-shirt, and a pair of dark jeans and threw them at him. He looked at the clothes in confusion, and then at Gale, also in confusion. She just gave him a shrug and went back to unpacking.

"Those are clothes that _friends_ of mine accidentally left behind. I figured bringing a few could come in handy. It seems I was right. Oh and don't worry, they're washed," she said the last part with a wink.

Devon just looked down at the clothes in his lap, "Thanks, but I don't mind just wearing my combat ge-"

"Mr Aster! If you think I'm letting any member of my team go without a decent attire you are sorely mistaken. As leader of this team I will make sure we are stylish yet comfortable at all times! Is that clear?"

Devon froze at the sudden outburst. He gulped, "Yes, ma'am."

"Good," she said flashing him her smile, "Now get dressed, we're going shopping." She placed the last of her things on her bedside table and reached back into the wardrobe for something to wear. After pulling out some items she began to strip. Devon watched for a moment then caught himself and stood, turning around. He heard her chuckle, "What? Not enjoying the show?" she teased, the grin evident in her voice.

"My dad always taught me to be a gentleman. 'While you may enjoy the view, it is always safer to be polite. Trust me, I did score your mother after all,'" Devon quoted, smiling at the memory. He then began to take off his uniform.

When he removed his shirt, leaving him only in his trousers, Gale spoke up from behind him, "Mmmmm, my friend is gonna love you." Devon looked at her over his shoulder with a raised eyebrow, quickly snapping his head back when he saw she was now only in her underwear.

She laughed a little, "Oops, I guess the cat's out of the bag now. Yes, I scored you a date for this afternoon. Thank me later. She's going to Beacon too, and she and her partner are going to meet up with us. We're going into the city for dinner, and now some shopping too. Hey, maybe if you show her that sweet bod' of yours we may have to put our text rule into action already!" she said teasingly.

Devon froze at this information, he hadn't been on a date in over a year. To say he was rusty would be a massive understatement. This, added with his recent attitude of making no friends was a recipe for disaster. His worries were interrupted however, by the opening of the room's door.

Devon turned to see Jade, frozen in the doorway, her eyes glued to him and her face bright red. Devon realised why she was acting this way, what with him still being half naked and in the process of putting the shirt on. The pose was undoubtedly showing off his toned upper body, and they stood like this for a few moments, before the other twin popped her head in through the gap.

"What is it?" Raven asked, "Oh..." She eyed him for a moment as well pushing Jade gently into the room. "I'm sure we'll be seeing plenty of this over our time here Jade, better get used to it."

She glanced quickly over at Devon again before turning to Gale, who was already dressed and putting items in her purse. "Why in such a rush there?" she asked, curious.

Devon finished dressing as Gale smiled up at the twins brightly, Jade still trying to calm the flushing of her cheeks. "I scored Devon and myself dates for tonight. We're heading out to meet them in a couple of minutes, so you better be prepared in case we need to put plan 'Occupied' into action," she explained, a cheerful smile on her face.

Raven just groaned, "Can you please go elsewhere if you plan on any 'activities' tonight. We haven't had a chance for a comfortable night's sleep yet and I'd rather not have to make other arrangements."

Gale tapped her finger on her chin for a moment, considering the argument, "Well, I'm nothing if not a generous leader! Very well, if we intend to shag tonight, we shall do so elsewhere!'

Raven just scowled at her, "Is that language really necessary?"

Devon had finally finished dressing, and as soon as he had grabbed his scroll and wallet, Gale grabbed him by the wrist and lead/dragged him towards the door. "Don't wait up for us kiddies!" she exclaimed on their way out, Devon just offering an apologetic look before he was pulled out of the room, the door swinging shut behind him.

"You ready for a great night, hot stuff?" Gale looped her arm in his and smiled up into his eyes. He examined her, checking out her attire. She was dressed in a tight fitting plain black shirt, even tighter jeans that hugged her behind nicely. Her hair was tied back in a pony tail, the dirty blonde strands hanging down between her shoulder blades.

Devon thought she actually looked really pretty like this, a casual pretty that he was not used to at some of the parties that he'd been to. He felt his concerns wash away at her confidence and nodded. At that she beamed and began to lead him down the hall. Devon smiled to himself. Maybe the next four years wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

**DUN DUN DUUUUUUUUN! Who could the mystery dates be!? :p**


	5. Date Pt 1

**So now we see some real interraction between the OCs and canon characters. Please review, criticise, praise and/or enjoy!**

* * *

"Relaaaaaaaax D'," Gale comforted, "so you haven't been on a date in a while. Who cares? This chick is really nice and I'm sure you'll hit it off. Ya never know, maybe you'll really hit it off and get a little sumthin-su-"

"So who is the unlucky lady anyway?" Devon cut in, he had to admit he was a little nervous, and wasn't in the mood for his partner's teasing at the moment.

"It's a surprise! But trust me, she's great, and if anyone can help you break out of that emo shell of yours, she can!" Gale chatted excitedly, "In fact... here they come now!"

Devon looked to where she was waving, seeing a girl with red hair tied back in a pony tail and a boy with messy blonde hair walking towards them. They were waiting in front of the fountain at the front of the school, and he almost fell backwards into it as he recognised the red head.

"Pyrrha freaking Nikos!?" Devon whispered out to Gale, sending her a shocked glance, "You're an asshole."

She just giggled back at him, "You can thank me later."

"You know I'm bound to fuck this up, right? Then literally the strongest and most famous first year is going to bust my balls. I will forever be an embarrassment to men everywhere and will never be able to date again," he whispered back, quite pissed that he was going on a date with one of the most beautiful women his age on Remnant and was doing so completely unprepared.

She just shrugged, waving off his concern, "Don't worry, you can't screw this up with me here to help you. I'm the best wing-woman ever."

Devon just sighed. "Fuck my life..." he said through his teeth as the pair reached them, Gale giving him a hard nudge with her shoulder.

He looked up at the pair now standing in front of them, putting a weak smile on his face, and waited for Gale to introduce them to each other. It was then he recognised the scraggly blond before him.

"Jaune?" he asked, a little surprised.

"Devon?" Jaune looked up with an awkward smile, "Fancy seeing you here."

"Yeah, you get dragged out too?" Devon asked, ignoring the playful pout Gale was giving him.

Jaune scratched the back of his head and chuckled nervously, "Yeah, something like that. My partner said something about coming out to meet a friend, and that I should come along. Only she didn't tell me that it was a _date_ until we were walking out of the building. But at least I have a friend to help me out."

Devon frowned slightly, "Friend?"

"Y-yeah, I mean, I know we haven't hung out all that much but you seem like an alright guy. Plus you seem a lot friendlier now than the other day. You don't mind do you?" he asked with a sheepish look on his face.

Devon's expression relaxed and he smiled, "Not at all." He held up his fist as did Jaune, and bumped the bottoms of them together, giving each other a friendly smile.

The boys turned their attention to the girls next to them when Gale cleared her throat, "Now, if you ladies are quite finished with your tea party, Devon I have someone I'd like you to meet." She motioned to the girl next to Jaune.

Devon turned to his apparent date for the afternoon and his heart rate increased immediately. He would make sure to get Gale back for this later. At the same time he was over the moon that he had a date with the legendary Pyrrha Nikos. Everyone knew who she was, her fame extended out of Mistral and all over Remnant, except maybe Jaune... he didn't exactly seem the like the most switched on person...

Devon's thoughts were interrupted by the girl extending a hand and introducing herself. "Hi! I'm Pyrrha Nikos. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Devon took her hand, his mouth agape, and shook it. "Uh... D-Devon. Devon Aster." She gave him a smile and he returned it to the best of his stunned ability.

"Well that was cute," Gale said with a smirk," Devon, would you please introduced me to our new friend."

Devon shook his head to bring himself back to the moment at hand. He didn't get the chance to speak however as Jaune put on a big grin and dashed over to his date.

"Why hello there gorgeous, the name's Arc, Jaune Arc. It is a pleasure to be in your presence." Gale flashed her smile, hooking an arm over the blonde boy's shoulder and smiling at him.

"Hi. I'm Gale, and..." she looked the boy up and down quickly, "the _pleasure_ is all mine." She moved her hand down to hook it around his waist and the boy froze in surprise, clearly his pickup lines had never worked before.

Devon shook his head at Gale's antics. At this rate "Occupied" was going to be a daily occurrence. He gestured towards the air docks, "Shall we?" The others nodded and they all made their way forward.

Gale whispered something quietly in Pyrrha's ear before returning to her embrace of Jaune. Pyrrha blushed lightly but moved next to Devon and looped her arm in in his as they boarded the airship.

* * *

The ride was quick and pleasant, aside from Jaune emptying his stomach into a bin while Gale laughed playfully at his discomfort. Devon talked with Pyrrha, after getting over his initial starstruck moment, and realised she was a really kind and charming girl beneath all the prowess and fame. He told her little of himself, happy just to listen to her talk about how excited she was to be starting at Beacon and how she had come to know Gale.

Apparently after one of her tournaments in Vale, her coach had taken her out to a bar, despite her being under age, to celebrate her victories. Gale apparently had attempted to pick Pyrrha up, not knowing who she was at first.

Devon turned to Gale, "Really? You have no control, do you?"

She waved her hands in Pyrrha's direction, "Are you kidding me?! You mean to say that if you saw that sitting alone at a bar, you wouldn't do the same thing?"

Pyrrha blushed at her words, but Devon just sighed, "We're not all animals like you..." he quoted Raven, a smirk coming to his face. Gale simply gave a playful pout at that and returned to watching Jaune.

Devon turned back to a now slightly blushing Pyrrha, "So anyway, what happened after that? I doubt the two of you became friends from that encounter."

"Well, after I turned her down she asked if I wanted to hang out for the night anyway. My coach had already gone off with some woman so I agreed. We just stayed and chatted at a table for a while, before we exchanged numbers and she made me promise to see her again if I ever came back to Vale," she explained. Gale chuckled from her spot next to Jaune.

"She left out the part where I kept trying to get her a hook-up, but she turned down every single one. And always politely, she's such a sweetie like that," she winked at Devon, "You're gonna have to work pretty hard if you want to get anywhere with this one 'D'."

Pyrrha's face was straight up red now and Devon gave Gale a dead stare, "Enough out of you. Shouldn't you be helping your date or something?"

On cue Jaune let out another load into the trash can. Devon was surprised that he had anything left to throw up. Gale looked down at the boy with a smirk on her face, before leaning down to rub a hand on his back, "Naaaw, want me to make you feel better? Much... much... better?"

Jaune looked up with a pleading look on his face, before what she said dawned on him. He turned back to the bin for another hurl.

"Well, that's a shot to the self-confidence right there..." Gale let out, a slight frown on her face.

They disembarked when the airship landed and made their way towards the nearest mall, the boys leading the way while the girls chatted behind them. Jaune tried to recover from the trip, and after a few deep breaths and some pats on the back from Devon he started up a conversation.

"So, what's your team like?" he asked.

Devon looked over his shoulder at his partner, receiving a smile and a wave, before turning back to Jaune, "Well, they're... unique, I guess is the best word for it. One is cheerful, cheeky and _very_ friendly, and despite the other two being twins, they themselves are almost completely different. One is very caring and calm, almost like a mother to the other one rather than a sister, and the other is quiet and shy but sweet. So naturally when I've decided to no longer look for relationships I get stuck with three gorgeous girls, it's almost as if the world is trying to punish me or something. But anyway, how's your team? You must be pretty happy to have someone as legendary as Pyrrha Nikos on your team."

Jaune laughed a little before replying, "Well actually, I didn't know who Pyrrha was when I first met her. In fact the only reason I recognised her at all is because someone pointed out that she as on the front of Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes. But then I found out about all her other accomplishments and well... I felt a little unworthy. But she assures me despite that that I'm going to be a great leader. Clearly she's delusional, but it's nice of her to say so."

"Huh..." Devon grunted, astonished by the blonde boy's ignorance of such a well-known celebrity.

"And then there's the other two in my team, two complete opposites. One, the most energetic bundle of joy you will ever see, and the other, very calm and quiet. At first I never thought they'd get along but apparently they've been together since childhood. But not 'together-together' as Nora would say," Jaune quoted, letting out a small chuckle.

Devon looked over his shoulder at the girls. They were chatting excitedly and giggling. He caught Gale's eye and she smiled back, giving one of her trademark winks before returning to her conversation with the redhead.

Devon gave Jaune a nudge, moving in closer and lowering his voice so the girls wouldn't be able to hear them. "By the way, apparently my partner is... very forward, even said so herself. So just a heads up, you will probably be getting lucky tonight, if that's what your up for."

Devon watched as the smile on the boy's face slowly turned to a nervous and almost frightened expression. His confident demeanour draining away after those sentences.

"W-w-what?" he asked nervously.

Devon smiled to himself, "She has basically admitted that she enjoys sleeping around, and from the looks she gave you, she seems pretty keen." He watched as Jaune started to draw beads of sweat across his forehead, "Aaaaaaaaaaand you're a virgin aren't you? Have you even been on a date before?"

Jaune looked at Devon with a slightly hurt look on his face but it quickly faded, "Yeah, I've been on a date or two before, but you're right, I haven't done... it... yet. As silly as it might sound I was kinda going to save it you know? At least until I had been with someone for a while."

Devon nodded in understanding, "Ok, well if you don't want to I'm sure I can talk her out of jumping you the minute we get back."

Jaune looked relieved at that comment and smiled, "Thanks."

They fist bumped again and rounded the corner and were greeted with the entrance of the mall a few feet in front of them. The girls caught up to them and they split up into their dating pairs. They agreed to meet at the restaurant Gale had booked at seven, so with two hours to kill, she dragged Jaune off to a nearby dust store.

"Shit," Devon cursed, "Oh well, I'm sure he can handle himself until dinner."

He turned to his date and looked her over. He noticed she was watching the two leaving, a somewhat sad look on her face. Devon frowned slightly, "You alright?" he asked, placing a kind hand on her shoulder.

Pyrrha snapped out of whatever thoughts she was having and turned to Devon, bringing a smile up to cover the sad look she had before, "Oh! Yes, I'm fine. So, is there anywhere you wanted to go?"

Devon relaxed his frown. Clearly she was unhappy about something but Devon decided not to push, she would tell him if she wanted to. "Well I don't currently have any clothes so I guess I should go shopping for those. These are Gale's," he added seeing her quizzical look, "don't ask. I also need more dust, but I can get that back at Beacon. What about you, you want to go anywhere in particular?"

The girl brought her finger to her chin in thought, "Not really, clothes shopping sounds great," she offered, the smile still plastered on her face.

Devon nodded and they started to make their way through the mall, stopping a few times to look in little trinket shops or any weapons store they came across. It turned out the redhead enjoyed seeing classic and old designs of weaponry, especially the more exotic and ancient ones.

In one of the stores they came across such a weapon, a large halberd about ten feet long. It's point split into two and the large axe-head curving down and out again. Devon watched as she stroked her fingers gently over the blade, marvelling at the weapons beauty. Devon was doing the same, only he wasn't marvelling at the blade.

He took in the sight of the girl before him, she really did have a nice figure, and she was extremely pretty. He turned away from the attractive sight. He couldn't be thinking like that, he was just keeping his promise to Gale, he couldn't afford to get into a relationship. As much as he was okay with making friends now, he was neither emotionally or mentally ready for anything more than that.

He looked over some of the other items around him, a knife catching his eye and he moved to examine it closer. It looked to be made of bone, probably animal, and had sharp ridges along the blade. He touched the bone, and it felt cold. He ran his fingers along the ridges carefully, trying not to cut himself.

He was not careful enough however, and one of the ridges caught his finger. He began to bleed a little onto the blade, and was surprised at how deep the cut had gotten despite being such a seemingly small nick. The blood that had dripped onto the knife trailed down the blade slowly, before it glowed a very faint red, and the blood vanished.

Devon frowned and pulled his hand back, his finger still bleeding and it showed no signs of stopping. He put pressure on the wound to try and stop the flow. The blood slowed but did not stop, still dripping from his hand. He turned to look for something he could use to wrap it, but seeing nothing instead took off his hoodie and shirt, tearing off a sleeve of the shirt. He quickly wrapped the fabric around the bleeding finger, the material immediately soaking up the blood, and finally tightening the wrap to cut off the circulation.

He grunted in discomfort and looked at the offending weapon. The glow had disappeared, along with any evidence that it had drawn blood. He picked up his shirt off of the floor and wiped up the few drips that had made it down his arm.

He heard a small gasp from somewhere behind him and looked around to see who it had come from. His date was standing a few feet behind him, her face a little red and seemingly holding her breath. It was then that Devon realised he was shirtless, his toned abs and lean arms on display.

He gave her a small smile, "Sorry. Heh, first date and I'm already taking my clothes off. A little forward isn't it?"

The redhead visibly snapped out of her staring and her cheeks got a little redder, "Haha yeah..." Her eyes then widened when she saw the blood soaked rag on his hand and looked up at him, "What happened?"

Devon brought his hand up and showed off the appendage, "Cut myself, silly me. But the bleeding was worse than I thought it would be, hence the wrap... and the lack of clothing."

She frowned at him, a curious look on her face, "Why didn't you use your aura to heal it? Don't tell me you don't know what aura is either."

Devon immediately broke eye contact and looked at the floor, "I know what aura is... it's just... I've never used it."

She moved closer to him now, only a foot gap between them. He looked up at her sudden closeness, her seemingly forgetting that he was still half naked. She had a calm but concerned expression as she placed a hand on his shoulder gently, "Well you must be very strong to have gotten into Beacon without using your aura. Your team is very lucky to have someone as capable as you."

Devon opened his mouth to say something about how her team had freaking _Pyrrha Nikos_ on it, but decided against it, not wanting to ruin this rather nice moment of closeness. It was then that she reached up and cupped the back of his head with her other hand.

"I can unlock your aura for you if you'd like? I did it for Jaune and I'd be happy to do it for you," she offered.

Devon thought about his situation for a moment. Here he was, standing shirtless in the middle of a weapons store with one of the most famous and most beautiful fighters on Remnant touching him and offering to open a range of new skills and possibilities for him. He smiled brightly, this could only happen at Beacon.

He nodded to Pyrrha and she smiled back and closed her eyes. Devon watched in awe as the faint red glow of her aura surrounded her.

"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all, infinite in distance and unbou-" she cut off mid chant and her eyes shot open wide, her aura dying down and then flaring up again as se took a step back, taking her hands off of him.

Devon's eyes searched hers, worried and questioning, "What? What's wrong?" he asked, a little panicked.

She took another step back and narrowed her eyes slightly, "You... don't have... an aura," she let out slowly, taking another step backwards, "or a soul."

Devon froze, his face scrunching up in confusion, "Wait, what? What are you saying?"

She reached instinctively for her weapon, realising it wasn't there and and looked up at him again, "The only creatures that have no souls are Grimm."

Devon took a step forward, holding his hands up in front of him, "Whoa, hang on a minute. You're telling me that I have no soul, no aura?" She nodded, her eyes staring at him, watching his every move, "Ok, so the logical explanation is that I'm a Grimm, I can get that. But I'm not, I'm just a guy. Just a guy with no aura. I'm still human though. A human that is on a date with a gorgeous girl, shirtless, and only just stopped bleeding. See!" he held his hand out, "I bleed, just like a human being bleeds. I don't have scary red eyes, I don't have bone plates anywhere and I'm not currently trying to kill everyone in this mall. I hate the Grimm more than anybody else and I have killed many of the monsters. I promise you that no matter what is going on, I am NOT a Grimm."

Despite his speech, inside his head Devon was flipping out. No soul? No aura? What the fuck was he then? He was sure he was human. Maybe he is and he's just a rare occurrence of an individual having no aura. Most people never use their auras so they'd have no idea whether they did or didn't have it.

He chose not to let his inner panic show however, trying to calm the tense girl before him. Pyrrha lowered her guard and relaxed a little, "I guess that makes sense. If you were a Grimm you couldn't have controlled yourself and would have already tried to kill everyone in this mall, let alone at Beacon. While I don't understand why you have no soul, and that concerns me, I guess you're not a Grimm."

Devon sighed in relief, lowering his hands and taking in a deep breath. He tried to take another step forward, however he was hit with dizziness and would have fallen over were it not for Pyrrha stepping in to catch him.

"You've lost a bit of blood, and the stress you just took is not helping. Come on, there's a pharmacy a couple of stores down, let's go there and see if they can patch you up," she suggested. Devon nodded, leaning on her for support. She picked up his hoodie and bloodied shirt off of the floor and slung them over her shoulder.

"I definitely need to buy some clothes," Devon stated, receiving a small giggle from the redhead. He smiled, glad that the mood had lightened.

When they made it to the pharmacy, Devon could walk by himself again and had put his hoodie back on, much to the apparent disappointment of a few female onlookers. Devon had even noticed a small pout on Pyrrha's face before she wiped her features clear, much to his amusement.

They entered the pharmacy and explained what had happened to the girl at the counter. She took a look at his wound, and after a moment had completely healed it using her aura. Devon winced, not from the wound but from the realisation that without aura, his time a Beacon was going to be a painful one.

He thanked the girl for her help and made his way back to his date. He waved at her with his newly fixed hand, "All good. Apparently it'll leave a small scar but other than that, good as new!"

Pyrrha smiled back at him, "That's great. I'm glad you're feeling better."

"And hey, thanks for all your help," he held out his hand, "You know, after everything."

She brushed his hand aside and pulled him in for a hug, "I'm so sorry," she apologised into his chest, "I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

Devon awkwardly returned the hug, still not used to human affection, "No, it's alright. I probably would have done the same. But hey, for tonight, do you think we could forget about it? I'd hate to ruin such a lovely evening. I promise I'll tell my team tomorrow and talk to a teacher about it," the redhead released him from her embrace and nodded, smiling brightly, "Good. And on that note we should probably go and find me some clothes, or you're going to have to explain to Gale why I'm no longer wearing my shirt.

Pyrrha let out a laugh, "Now that is something I definitely do not want to do."

Devon gestured towards the entrance of the pharmacy, "Shall we?" Once again Pyrrha looped her arm in his and they made their way further into the mall.


	6. Date Pt 2

They made their way through the mall, checking out some of the flashier fashion stores and making fun of the snobby clerks behind their backs. They went into a few less exuberant and pricey ones to look for some casual items for Devon.

As they walked into the first one Pyrrha discovered that Devon really had no sense of style, much to her amusement. Every time he came out of the dressing room wearing something he thought looked good, she either laughed or cringed and shook her head. After his fifth attempt at a dashing outfit she told him to sit while she went to grab a collection of more fitting items.

Devon sat in silence while the redhead went to work, contemplating his plans for tomorrow. He would need to tell his team about his discovery, Gale first or she would no doubt be insulted. He was certain he would need to talk to a teacher at some point about it, but he would see what his teammates thought of it first. If they thought it wasn't a big deal then maybe he would leave it, although if Pyrrha's reaction was anything to go by that was unlikely.

Also, would he still be able to attend Beacon if he had no access to his aura? Devon knew that aura use was a big part of becoming a successful Huntsman, but surely it was possible to become one if he trained his physical and mental skills well enough. Maybe he could ask Pyrrha for some help? She was a star combatant after all, both her physical and mental prowess leagues above anyone else he knew.

He thought about how Gale would take that, him leaving his team to train with someone else. Maybe he should talk to the rest of his team about training before seeking outside help.

He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard someone clearing their throat. He shook his head to clear it and looked up at to see a smirking Pyrrha standing before him. She held a bundle of clothes in her arms, an eyebrow raised.

"Finished daydreaming there? You weren't having any inappropriate thoughts I hope?" she teased dumping the pile of clothes in his lap.

Devon looked at the pile then back up at the girl. He tilted his head slightly, a smile coming to his face, "Careful, you're beginning to sound like Gale," he teased back gathering the items and heading towards the changing cubicle.

After a few minutes he came out, pulling at the edges of the shirt and tugging uncomfortably at his jeans. "I don't think you got the sizes right," he mumbled.

He looked up to see the redhead before him frozen, green eyes wide and mouth open. Pyrrha had chosen a shirt easily too small for him and it had had the desired effect. His pecs and abs clearly defined in the tight confines of the fabric. He folded his arms, accentuating them even more, and raised an eyebrow, a smirk appearing on his face.

"Really? You've already seen me without my shirt on. If you want to see you can just ask."

Pyrrha snapped out of her gawking and a light blush covered her cheeks, but she quickly covered it up with a smirk. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said nonchalantly, "I think that will do nicely. Now come on, next pair."

Devon just shook his head and smiled, returning to the change room. He emerged a little while later, this time wearing a more appropriately fitting shirt and a pair of shorts, reaching down to just above his knees. "This is more my style," he stated, eyeing himself in the full body mirror.

"Twirl," Pyrrha commanded from her chair. Devon raised an eyebrow at her but did as she asked and spun on the spot. "Not that fast. Slowly. I need a good look at you," she added. Devon chuckled and gave her a slower spin, pivoting on the tip of one foot. Now it was Pyrrha's turn to raise her eyebrow. "Hey Mister Fancy. Where'd you learn to do that?"

Devon frowned in confusion, "Do what?"

The redhead gestured at his feet, "A pirouette," she clarified.

Devon looked down at his feet, "Oh, well I used to dance, looks like the training stuck with me. I guess that's why my fighting style is the way it is."

She looked up at him, "Why did you stop?"

He let out a long breath as he thought about it. After a few moments he looked down at his feet again. "I guess I stopped, after... uh... well..." Devon didn't want to tell this girl his life story, of how he lost everyone he had ever loved and his home had been destroyed, and how he had been too distraught to continue dancing after his only ever partner had perished. It would just destroy the mood.

"After what?" she prodded, her eyes curiously scanning his face.

"After... I began to focus on my fighting. You know, to get into Beacon," he offered. It wasn't a total lie, he had focused more on his fighting after the incident but it wasn't the sole reason for him stopping.

"Oh ok. Well I would love to see you perform sometime! I think you should start again. You can't just spend your whole time here training," she said enthusiastically, smiling brightly at him. "Plus, the ladies like a man who can sweep them of their feet," she added.

Devon forced a small smile onto his face, the memories of his old partner still on his mind, "Maybe."

"Well I know I would love to see it, and I'm sure Gale would too. Do you need a partner for it? I know some ballroom," she offered.

Devon had to look away from her at that, and blinked back a tear that threatened to leave his eye. "No," he managed, "thanks for the offer though."

Pyrrha didn't press him any longer and changed the subject. "Well in any case it would seem that only blacks and greys really suit you. None of these colours seem to work. Go and try the other set on."

Devon nodded and turned back to the room, stepping behind the curtain. He did so just in time to hide the single tear that rolled down his right cheek. He quickly wiped it away and removed his shirt telling himself that now was not the time.

As he went to remove his shorts he stopped, his eyes locking onto himself in the mirror. He looked down at his reflection's belly, and just to the left of his abs there was a small scar, about an inch long. He ran a finger lightly across it as the memory of how he had acquired it flashed through his mind. He grimaced and tore himself from the mirror, pulling off his shorts and putting on the black tank top and grey shorts.

He composed himself and stepped out from behind the curtain. He twirled on the spot again and posed, waiting for Pyrrha's opinion.

"Niiiiiiice, hot stuff! Guns out for the ladies, eh?" Devon's emotional state immediately sobered when he saw who had spoken. Gale was standing next to where Pyrrha was seated giving him a thumbs up.

"Hi," he simply returned, seeing Jaune was now in the store as well, his face a bright red and his eyes dancing around nervously. Devon caught his eyes and they pleaded to him. He nodded back and motioned to Pyrrha, "Hey, why don't you see what black and grey stuff you can find that would look good and I'll buy it. I just need to chat with Jaune, won't be a sec." He brushed off their curious looks as he grabbed Jaune around the shoulder and led him to a quiet corner of the store.

"Hey," Jaune finally greeted.

"Hey," Devon replied, eyeing him for a moment before adding, "Sorry."

"I don't think you understand!" Jaune suddenly burst out, waving his hands above his head a little before Devon shushed him, "She took me to lingerie stores! Lingerie! You left me on my own with her."

Devon held up his hands in defence, "She ran off with you before I got a chance to say anything. You survived though right? Plus it can't have been _that_ bad? She does have a nice body."

Jaune gave him a look of mock annoyance before a sheepish grin entered his features, "Well... yeah. But it was still embarrassing."

Devon chuckled, "Alright, well I'll talk to her now and sort it out for you."

"Thanks, I don't think I'd survive if she kept it up for the rest of the night," a look of relief washed over him.

Devon smiled, "Yeah, she is a bit of a handful."

They made their way back over to their dates/partners, and Devon noticed that Gale had a mischievous smirk on her face while Pyrrha's cheeks were bright red. Again. He sighed, "I apologise for my partner, she has no self-control." Gale just stuck her tongue out at him and he rolled his eyes, turning to Pyrrha, "So, find anything for me?"

She did her best to wipe the blush off her face and nodded to the pile of clothes on the chair next to her. He walked over to the pile, picked it up and made his way to the counter after thanking the redhead. He paid for his new wardrobe he returned to the trio, only this time both Pyrrha _and _Jaune were red in the face.

"Oh for fuck's sake, I'm not even going to ask this time. It's almost seven, we should probably head to the diner now. And I need to talk to you," he pointed an accusatory finger at his partner, "on the way there."

Gale put on her best innocent face and pointed at herself giving a 'Who me?' look. Devon just narrowed his eyes and nodded as he grabbed her by the shoulder and started to drag her out of the store. Jaune and Pyrrha just traded blank looks before following them.

Devon shifted the bag in his hands, and had an idea. He turned to the two behind him and pointed in the direction of the restaurant, "I need to talk to my partner here in private for a moment, if you two make your way there we'll meet up with you in a bit."

They both nodded and started on their way as Devon gripped Gale's shoulder and made his way outside. Gale just slippede out of his grip and started to skip backwards next to him. "So, what did you want to talk about Mr Seriousness? Want to plan how to get invited back our dates' room later?" Her eyes lit up with mischief and a grin came to her face.

Devon just scowled, "Actually you're not far off. I need to talk to you about Jaune."

Gale's grin widened, "Oh, I didn't know you swing that way. In that case I'm sure I can convince Pyrrha to-"

"_Not_ what I was trying to say!" Devon interrupted before she took that train of thought too far, "What I meant was, you're making Jaune uncomfortable. He's still a virgin and wants to save himself and besides, you've been embarrassing him all afternoon. If we want to stay friends with these two you need to dial it down. I'm not interested in taking things further with Pyrrha so stop trying to force that. Can we please just have a nice night?"

They had made it outside and he pulled out his scroll, tapping the screen a few times before putting it away. Gale was now leaning against the wall of the building and had a contemplative look on her face. "Fine, I'll behave for tonight. In terms of the scraggly blonde, I don't want to deflower anyone if they don't want it. I'm not cruel. I'm disappointed that you don't want to pursue Pyrrha though, she's really great and you're quite a catch yourself."

"I'm not good boyfriend material, and I'm not at Beacon to find someone," he replied.

Gale let out a long breath, "Yeah... you said."

At that moment a loud noise came from above them and they looked up in time to see a rocket like object slam into the ground in front of Devon. Devon reached out and typed his pass code into the rocket-locker that had landed and opened it, tossing the bag of clothes in. He lifted it upright and took out his scroll again, and soon after it was on its way again back to Beacon.

"Well, that's one way to do it," Gale muttered. She looked around and noticed that people were staring at them, open mouthed and pointing. "It seems you've drawn a crowd."

Devon looked around at the onlookers and caused many to quickly look away and move on. "You'd think they'd never seen a violently rocket powered locker before."

"Funny." She made her way over to him and grabbed him by the hand, pulling him back into the mall, "Come on we gotta get back to our dates. It's rude to keep a lady waiting."

* * *

They arrived at the restaurant, a quaint little place set on the top floor of the mall with a balcony overlooking the floors below, and waited to be shown to their table. Devon was surprised at his partner's taste, expecting something more casual like a diner or pub.

"Trine, table for four," Gale stated politely when the waitress arrived, surprising Devon again with her mannerisms. He'd never seen her act so proper and polite before. Although he did ask her to dial it down, so maybe this was a good thing.

The waitress nodded and lead them out to the balcony area. "Ah, so you must be the dates. We had a bit of confusion when the other two showed up, we assumed they were together. Their reactions were entertaining to say the least," she stated with a light chuckle.

A glint of cheekiness flashed over Gale's eyes for a brief moment, but Devon caught it and had to restrain the urge to facepalm. This was going to be an interesting dinner.

When they arrived at their table the sheer level of awkwardness could be felt in the air. Both Jaune and Pyrrha looked uncomfortable, avoiding each others' eyes and their cheeks a little pink. Devon had to nudge the girl next to him to get her hungry gaze off of the potential teasing goldmine in front of her. He gave her a firm stare before shaking his head, never losing eye contact. She huffed in annoyance but a calm smile came to her face and she nodded.

Noticing the newcomers, Jaune rose from his chair, pulling out the one opposite him and gesturing for Gale to sit. She politely thanked him while placing her hand on his shoulder and flashing him her winning smile, before taking her seat. Devon sat down opposite Pyrrha and next to his partner, Jaune taking his seat diagonal to him.

The waitress asked what drinks they would like, and before anyone could answer, Gale quickly ordered two glasses of red wine for her and Pyrrha and a beer each for Jaune and Devon. Devon politely asked for a cider instead, claiming that beer just tasted like wet bread to him, and the waitress nodded and left to collect the beverages. Devon turned back to the group to find two nervous looking teens across from him and an amused one to his right.

"Wet bread, really?" Gale questioned, one eyebrow raised.

"Uh, that's hardly the greatest concern at the moment," Jaune nervously contributed, "We're underage, we're not allowed to be drinking." Pyrrha nodded in agreement.

Gale just smiled and leaned back in her chair, "Not me, I'm eighteen already and so is my partner here I believe. Lighten up, one drink won't hurt and it'll help you relax a little. Everyone is so pent up after coming to Beacon, we could all use a drink."

At that the waitress arrived with their drinks, handing them out and asking if they were ready to order. After placing their orders (Pyrrha a chicken salad, Jaune a burger, Gale some fish and Devon a steak) they engaged in small talk, talking about their lives before Beacon and what they were looking forward to over the next four years. Well, everyone but Devon that is. He just sipped at his drink and quietly listened as Jaune recounted one of the many pranks his sisters had pulled on him. Devon would never have imagined a goat could be used in such a fashion with a hairdryer, but the detail with which Jaune told the story gave him little reason to doubt it.

Unfortunately Jaune's stories had caused unfortunate memories of his own sister to resurface. He stared at the label of his drink as he thumbed it, moving drops of condensation around. She had been too young to die, barely twelve and still so much life to live. Nobody had as much positive energy as she did, like her father she was always there for anyone when they were feeling sad or under the weather. Even total strangers on the street she would talk to to make sure they were okay. Anyone she met would have their day brightened and it brought joy to her soul to know she had been the one to cause it. And that's what made her death even more tragic to him. A light had been snuffed out, and he hadn't been able to stop it.

His thoughts were interrupted by the waitress next to him clearing her throat, and he looked up to see that everyone was staring at him. They all looked concerned and he had to fight the urge to scowl. Of course they caught him when he was deep in depressing thought, everyone seemed to be able to tell when he was upset. He really needed to get better at hiding his emotions. He looked up at the waitress, hoping to avoid the conversation he knew would come.

"The fish and the salad," she announced to them, placing the dishes in front of the girls, "I'll be back with the burger and steak in a moment." She bowed slightly and made her way back to the kitchen. The girls waited politely for the boys to receive their meals before starting their own, unfortunately for Devon it meant that he received their undivided attention.

He sighed and sat up straighter in his chair. "What?" he asked, "Is something the matter?" The three at his table turned to look at each other uneasily before they turned back to him.

"Are you okay?" Pyrrha asked him, placing her hand gently on his.

He slowly slid his hand out from under hers and brought it up to rest his chin on it, "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

In a soft voice Gale spoke to him, "You were crying."

Devon brought his other hand up to his face and sure enough his cheek was a little wet. He frowned at the moistness on his fingers and cursed himself silently for being so careless with his emotions. He just rubbed at his eyes, wiping away the moisture and took another swig from his bottle.

"Do you want t-"

"No," Devon cut Gale off mid sentence, and took another gulp from his drink. He realised that his bottle was now empty and frowned at it before placing it back down, making a note to order another when the waitress came back. He looked up to see everyone staring again, and let out a frustrated sigh, "Can we not do this, please? I'm fine, let's not ruin tonight just because my eyes were a little wet."

The girls didn't look like they were going to give it up until Jaune spoke up across the table, "So how come you guys are eighteen already and only just starting at a Hunter academy? Everyone who starts is usually seventeen or will be soon. I only know of one exception and she's fifteen, she was so good that they brought her forwards two years."

Devon caught Jaune's eye and gave him a small smile, silently thanking him for the change in subject. Jaune nodded back slightly, the girls not noticing the interaction.

Gale spoke up first, "I actually took a year off after I graduated from Signal to party, call it a gap year of you like. I had so much fun meeting new people, discovering new things. But I promised my parents I would go to school this year and start training to become a huntress. It was fun, but the world needs saving and many more adventures await me!" She raised her fist at the last part, taking a dramatic pose in her seat, "But enough about me, what about you 'D'?"

Everyone turned their attention to Devon once again waiting for his response. Again, he didn't want to tell these two his life story, but if he straight up lied Gale would know. He sighed, "I never trained at a combat school because I never planned on becoming a huntsman. However, my mother had taught me how to fight a little back when I was young. I decided to try and get in to Beacon so that I could learn to fight as I was now a bit old for the combat schools. But, seeing as I didn't have the years of training at a combat school that everyone else had I trained non-stop for a year. After that year I felt I was strong enough to get in, and so I applied. Luckily they're not too fussy about your age at the academies. I guess they are desperate for fighters these days."

"I'm impressed you could attain such skill level in so short a time," Pyrrha praised, "Most students take seven years to reach the level you did in only one. You must have had a great teacher."

Devon shook his head earning a frown from the redhead, "I trained myself. It was brutal and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, but I had a strong drive. It was really the only thing keeping me from just giving up."

"That reminds me," his date continued, "you mentioned you never planned on becoming a huntsman, what changed your mind? What was your drive?"

Devon froze at the question, he had slipped up. They were not meant to ask about his reasons, or his goal, but he left the question out there just waiting to be asked. His mind ran through a million ways he could answer or get himself out of the situation. This was why he hated interaction, people ask too many questions.

He was saved by the waitress arriving with Jaune and his meals, breaking up the silence that had taken hold, and asking if there was anything else they needed. Once again Jaune came to his rescue, "I think we're good, thanks. Come on guys, dig in! We don't want it getting cold."

Devon immediately tucked into his food. This date had started out alright but now that everyone was talking he was regretting ever agreeing to it. Being the strong silent type meant that people were supposed to leave you alone. So why did it seem like people were drawn to him everywhere he went?

Conversation had returned to small talk regarding upcoming classes and events at Beacon. Pyrrha was particularly looking forward to Friday, a day dedicated to combat. "I can't wait to meet many new opponents in the arena, I always enjoy a new and engaging fight. The problem with the tournaments back home is that the same people usually end up competing. The same four people have been in the finals for the last three years, so I'm looking forward to the new challenges."

"Yeah so you can whoop all their asses in spectacular fashion as always, I bet!" cheered Gale, "But if you think you can beat me you've got another thing coming!" She narrowed her eyes at the champion in challenge.

"I'm sure you're a spectacular fighter, especially if you fight as well as I've seen you wrangle boys," the redhead teased back, "So what is your team like? In terms of combat I mean?"

"Oh I see, trying to suss out the competition so you can get a leg up on us, eh? Well I'm sorry to burst your bubble missy, but I'm not telling. And plus, our team has decided to leave our skills as a surprise for Friday. Even for each other, all we know is what little we saw of each other during initiation. Except for the twins I guess, spending their whole lives together and all that. But I'm sure they've all got more up their sleeves than what they showed," Gale explained, giving Devon an expectant look.

"That's one way to put it," he added mysteriously.

"Yeah, all we know is weapons and general style. We don't know each other's semblances or even if they use dust. It should make for quite a show."

Pyrrha looked between Jaune and Devon with a mix of concern and amusement, but just shrugged when Gale gave her a questioning look. "I look forward to it," she responded politely.

Devon noticed Jaune looking very nervous over in his seat, fidgeting slightly. "Everything alright buddy?" he asked.

"Y-yeah, everything is f-fine... y-yeah, heh heh..." he chuckled nervously.

"You'll be fine Jaune. Just because you've never used aura before doesn't mean you'll be any less skilled. Many people don't know how to use it properly, that's why we are going to Beacon, to learn. And once you discover your semblance I'm sure you'll be a force to be reckoned with," his partner assured him, placing a kind hand on his shoulder.

Devon watched the interaction with amusement. He caught his teammate's eye and she tilted her head towards the two across from them, eyebrows raised and silently asking _'did you see that?'_

Devon just nodded then shrugged. He could see what was going on but decided not to comment on it. Whether Jaune realised what was going on or if Pyrrha realised she was telegraphing it so much was up to them to discover.

He looked at his scroll for the time, "Well it's almost nine, we should probably head back to Beacon now. We still have school tomorrow."

Jaune groaned, "Don't remind me. I have Leadership Training at eight thirty. I still don't get why I was made leader, Pyrrha and the other two are much stronger than I am."

"Believe it or not Jaune, I think Ozpin knows what he's doing. And besides, if leaders were chosen purely on strength, then surely I would have been made leader," he looked to Gale with a smirk at the last sentence.

She just narrowed her eyes at him, "Watch it boy, that's borderline traitorism."

"I think the word you're looking for is treason," Pyrrha corrected.

Jaune chuckled then motioned to the waitress and asked for the cheque. She arrived shortly after with the booklet, but before Jaune could lay his hand on it Devon snatched it up and quickly threw a card of lien into it, enough to cover their meals and give a generous tip. He smiled lightly to the waitress and handed the booklet back to her. She thanked him for his generosity and bid them goodnight.

"Now I just feel inadequate..." Jaune mumbled.

"Relax, I have more money than I really need and I don't really buy anything other than the essentials for living and fighting. I'm happy to cover the tab," Devon explained, but noticing Jaune's dejected look added, "But if it would make you feel better, you can buy me a drink if we hang out again."

The blonde looked up at him with joy in his eyes, but then frowned, "Wait, but I still can't drink..."

"Shall we head off?" Devon asked, cutting Jaune off and causing Gale to giggle at their little debate.

Jaune gave a defeated huff and they all nodded, standing up and making their way out of the restaurant. They thanked the staff and started on their way back to the airship dock. Gale continued to pester Jaune about stories from his home, finding particular joy in his embarrassing recount of the time when he was younger and was mistaken for a girl by the other kids at school. Apparently it had taken him a whole week to convince them otherwise.

As they walked Devon became lost in his thoughts, wondering what his future time at Beacon was to become. He had no aura, and therefore no semblance or ability to heal. He had a combat class on Friday where that would surely become evident and needed to find out what was going on before then, lest he get maimed beyond repair before his goal is achieved. Surely Gale would know what to do.

Devon had confused feelings all of a sudden. This was the first time he had ever really needed to rely on someone for something. It was a new and scary feeling knowing that you would be lost if they couldn't or wouldn't come to your aid, but at the same time he felt happy knowing that if he had to rely on anyone, he had Gale. Sure she was mischievous and flirty, but he knew when it came down to it, she would be there for him.

A small smile made its way onto his face as he thought that. He realised that after meeting his new partner that he, for the first time in over a year, felt happy.

"What are you smiling about, Mister Sir?" Gale bounced down into the seat next to him. It was then that Devon realised they had boarded the airship and were already halfway back to Beacon. "I think that's the first time I've seen you without a bored or irritated look on your face."

Devon looked up at her with a calm smile and just stared into her beautiful green eyes. After a moment of silence she gave him a nervous expression and broke it, "What?"

"Thank you," he spoke quietly, but loud enough for her to hear over the slight noise of the engines.

She looked at him with an amused but confused expression, "For what?"

An uncharacteristic grin made its way onto his face, "For being a pain in the ass," he said, earning a tongue poked out at him, "and... for being the best partner I could ask for."

Gale looked slightly taken aback at his words, her bright eyes widening and her mouth hanging slightly agape. After a brief moment like this, she leapt forward, enveloping him in a tight hug. "Awwwww! I knew there was a softie in there somewhere!" she cried gleefully, earning the attention of a few of the others on the deck, including the pair they had spent the afternoon with.

Devon tapped her on the shoulder, "Alright, that's enough. People are staring." She didn't let up and continued the embrace.

"Let them."

Devon heard a snicker and turned to see Jaune covering his mouth with his hand, trying not to laugh, and Pyrrha giggling next to him. He rolled his eyes but his smile never left his face.

* * *

As the airship docked Gale unwrapped herself from him and they made their way back through the school to the dorms. As they arrived at Jaune and Pyrrha's dorm each pair split to say goodnight to their dates. Devon turned to Pyrrha, "Thanks for tonight. I'm not used to... all this, so I hope I didn't mess up too much. And thanks for not flipping out too much about the... thing."

The redhead smiled back at him, "No problem. I had a wonderful time."

"Well I hope we hang out with you guys again sometime, maybe with our whole teams, as friends," he added, hoping his message got across. He hoped she wouldn't take any offence to him not wanting to pursue her, but it was just not possible for him.

She nodded politely, "Definitely."

They turned back to the other pair in time to see Gale planting a chaste kiss on the blonde boy's cheek, causing his face to match the colour of his partner's hair. Jaune stuttered out what was probably a goodbye before quickly entering the dorm. Gale laughed and turned to Pyrrha, "I'll see you around babe, don't be a stranger."

The champion nodded and gave her goodbye before following her leader. Now alone in the hallway the two teens made their way back to their own dorm, conveniently only around the corner. They walked in silence until they reached the door and made their way inside. It was almost ten thirty by now and the twins were peacefully asleep in their beds.

The duo made their way to their own beds and changed into their pyjamas. Gale slipped into a loose white shirt, the bottom of it almost reaching almost to her knees, and Devon just stripped down to his boxers. They said goodnight and laid down, revelling in the comfort of a bed after two less than par nights of sleeping arrangements in a row, and let the realm of sleep consume them.

* * *

**So... that was a bit of a long wait for a chapter. I fully intended to be more frequent but Uni got significantly more work heavy this year and I kind of forgot to write this. Saying that, I am actually working on a novel at the moment with these characters. At first writing this fanfiction was a way where I could explore these characters in a different environment to learn more about them in a way, and also to alleviate a bit of writer's block. So despite not catching up on this, my original story is well under way. So, any feedback, pointers, grammar Nazism or review helps immensely to improve my skill and confidence. I reread the whole fic the day I intend to upload a new chapter to edit crappy work or to make sure I'm following it logically.**

**So thank you for taking the time to read and I hope to upload more frequently from now on. Six months is a bit ridiculous :p**


	7. Learning

Devon woke to the gentle shaking of his shoulder. He groggily opened his eyes to see two bright green orbs staring back at him.

"Morning," Gale greeted sweetly. Devon glanced over at his scroll on his bedside table, the clock reading quarter past eight.

"Nope," he said rolling over and snuggling into the comfortable mattress, pleading for sleep to consume him again.

"Rude," she commented, "Come on 'D', I've got Leader Training in fifteen minutes. I can't be here to wake you up for your first class, and I have no doubt you'll sleep through the whole day if I don't." After receiving no response she sighed and planted a foot on his back, before kicking him off the bed.

"Hey!" Devon cried, as he fell, landing on the floor in an unceremonious heap, "Fine, fine I'm up! Damn girl."

"Good. I'll see you at Professor Peach's lecture at ten." She turned to the twins who were gathering their various items for the shower, "If he goes back to sleep you have my permission to drag him to class in any state of dress he may be in."

The twins turned to Devon, who had attempted to creep back into his bed while his leader wasn't looking, Raven with an amused smile and Jade letting out a small giggle. He froze for a moment like a deer in headlights, before letting out a defeated groan and making his way for the door.

"Where are you going? You're not even dressed!" Raven asked in astonishment, watching him shamble out of the room like a zombie.

Devon spoke through a yawn, "Clothes...huaaah...in locker. Locker not here."

Gale just laughed and followed him out of the dorm, leaving the rest of their team with astounded looks on their faces.

They slowly made their way down the halls, Devon still half-asleep, as Gale watched him in amusement, "Wow. You really _aren't_ a morning person are you?"

"Once I've got some food in me and had a shower I'll be good to go," he replied drowsily, walking out the front door of the dorm building and into the open school grounds. Gale decided to follow him to the locker rooms as she still had some time before class. And boy, was she not disappointed. Devon, in his mostly naked state, had attracted the attention of many passersby, some amused and others awkward. He had received plenty of laughs and ridicule but shrugged them all off. He didn't care, it was too early to worry about pride or public indecency.

As they made it to the lockers Gale almost lost it, seeing all of the shocked faces of the other students, as Devon wandered past them towards his locker. She completely lost it soon after however, when standing not three metres from his locker and talking to a student, was none other than Professor Goodwitch. She was infamously the most strict teacher out of all of the staff at Beacon, and the look on her face, to Gale was priceless. The disciplinarian stormed over to Devon as he attempted to open his locker, after getting the pass code wrong for the second time, and practically growled at him, "Mr Aster! What is the meaning of this?"

Devon looked up to the platinum haired woman with a tired expression, before turning back to his locker, which had finally allowed him access. "My clothes are in...huaaah...in my locker professor."

The woman was fuming by now, "Young man, I do not appreciate the sarcasm. Now I will ask again. _Why_ are you walking around the school in your _underwear_?"

"My uniform is in my... locker..." he started, before staring dumbfounded at the now revealed contents of the locker.

By now his partner was on the floor, reeling in laughter. "Devon!... Uniform... back... dorm... You changed... date!" she managed to get out between fits of laughter. By now the whole room had come to see what all the commotion was about, and had joined the girl in her mirth.

Devon tipped his head back and groaned, "Fuuuaaaaaaaaark!" The teacher next to him jumped back a little in surprise, and watched in disbelief as her student walked off back the way he came, "Sorry Miss. Wrong spot." He left the room and his partner to continue their laughter and started on his way back to the dorm. "I'm going to eat it next class I have with her..." he mumbled to himself.

He bumped into someone during his musings and looked up to see the school's headmaster looking down at him over his spectacles, bringing his ever-present coffee mug to his lips and taking a sip. "While I am quite sure that there are some that would appreciate the view, Mr Aster, might I suggest acquiring a uniform before heading to class?"

Devon yawned again and nodded to the professor, "Gale's fault, sir. She's a terrible...huaaaah...leader." The headmaster chuckled at that and allowed the boy to continue on his way.

"The young never cease to amuse," the enigmatic man stated with a small smile on his face, before heading off on his own way.

* * *

"No. Way. You mean I missed out on eye candy _and_ a speechless Goodwitch!?" Yang exclaimed. Both teams RWBY and GRDJ were eating lunch in the cafeteria and Gale had just recounted that morning's events, earning laughter from the whole table. Devon continued to eat his sandwich in silence. His morning had been less than pleasant, as word travelled quickly about his escapade, and he had been hearing snickers and giggles from his classmates all morning. He had a class with Goodwitch after lunch, and he normally would have skipped it, if it weren't for the fact that the class was 'Aura and the Soul'. If he had any chance of finding out what was wrong with him, he had to go.

"Do you do private seesions?" the blonde continued to tease.

He finished his food and stood up, "I'll see you guys in class."

As he made to leave Gale called out, "Hey! Wait up!" Leaving their friends and the sounds of laughter behind, she followed her partner out of the cafeteria.

They wandered aimlessly around the campus for a few minutes in silence, as class didn't start for another half hour. She followed him to the front of the school, to the cliff overlooking the water that ran from Beacon, through the city of Vale, and out into the ocean. The silence continued for a little longer as they gazed out over the waves before Gale turned to her partner, "You know we're only teasing, right?"

Devon looked to her in confusion, "What? Oh yeah, I know. I'm not the type of person to get depressed like that."

"Then what's wrong? You've been quiet all morning, which I get is kind of your _thing_, but I know something's bothering you. I'm your partner 'D', you can talk to me." She put a gentle hand on his shoulder and gave it a small squeeze.

Devon surprised his teammate with a chuckle, "Yeah, I know. In fact I've been trying to come up with the best way to tell you all morning, but I guess I might as well be blunt about it."

"About what?" she asked, a questioning look in her eyes.

He gazed back into them for a moment, those beautiful soul gripping green eyes, before he decided to speak what was on his mind, "Apparently, I don't have an aura. Or a soul for that matter," he added, seeing the confused look on her face.

They stood like that for a solid two minutes, Gale with a confused frown on her face, and Devon with a calm and unreadable expression. Gale had undoubtedly been absorbing and processing this information during the lengthy silence, and had surely used it to formulate an appropriate response.

"What?"

Devon let out a sigh as he sat down on the edge of the cliff, "I never had my aura unlocked. As I said, I never planned on becoming a Huntsman, I never had the need. Pyrrha offered to unlock it for me yesterday, and when she tried, it didn't work. She said that I didn't have a soul, and even accused me of being a Grimm," he let out a laugh, "Some first date, huh?"

Gale sat down next to him and watched the rolling of the waves with him. "Maybe it's not that big of a deal?" she offered, "Many people never get their auras unlocked so they wouldn't know. It might just be a rare occurrence."

"I thought that at first too, but then I realised that surely I would still have a soul. Every human has a soul, the only creatures that don't are Grimm," he explained, "But I know I'm not a Grimm. I'm not. I can't be. I hate the beasts, and I will not rest until their kind are wiped out. But then, what does that make me? And how the hell am I supposed to train at a Hunter Academy without an aura?"

"I know you're not a Grimm. I can feel it," Gale wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his shoulder, "your warmth. There's so much life within you that you don't even know is there. We'll figure out what's going on, together. As partners. As a team. We'll talk to the girls and see what they think. They were trained by some of the greatest teachers around, maybe they know something?"

"Yeah. Okay..." They continued to gaze out onto the water for all of three seconds before their nice moment was interrupted by a familiar voice.

"You guys are soooo cuuuuuuuute!" Yang squealed, causing the two to whip around, Gale unwrapping herself from her partner instinctively. Devon just rolled his eyes and stood up, holding his hand out for his partner. She took it and he pulled her to her feet.

Before he knew what was happening Gale had pushed herself up against his side, holding his shoulder and lifting a foot out behind her daintily. She turned to blonde in front of them with a devilish grin on her face. "Aren't we?" she cooed in a sweet girly voice.

Devon's eyes widened, darting between the two blondes, his heart racing. What was she trying to say? He'd made it clear that he didn't want to date anyone, and he thought when they had become partners that she was backing off. Maybe she thought all this emotional talk meant more than what he intended it too, and him not pursuing Pyrrha was a hint that he was interested in her?

His inner turmoil was interrupted however, when he heard laughter. He looked down to see Gale with the biggest shit eating grin on her face, and Yang holding her sides as she laughed uncontrollably.

"You should see your face," his partner teased, giggling along with her friend.

Of course. It was Gale after all.

He let out a defeated sigh and pulled himself away from the girl. He went to walk past the fiery blonde, but she grabbed him by the wrist before he got too far. He looked at her with an unimpressed stare as he waited for her to calm down.

"Look, I came to say sorry. I was only teasing before and I didn't know you were so sensitive underneath that big tough guy act. This probably doesn't help my case, though... but that was Gale's fault!" she apologised after bringing her laughter under control.

"It's okay, I'm not one to get depressed from just a bit of teasing," he replied reassuringly, "We should probably go, class starts in five minutes." Both girls nodded and fell into step either side of him as they made their way to their next class. Devon still had one concern itching at his mind however, and turned to Yang. "How much of that did you see?", he asked, hoping his nervousness didn't make it through to his voice. He was worried she had overheard their conversation and the fewer people who knew about his... condition, the better.

"Oh not much, I found you two cuddling together and I knew I had to say something!" she answered with a cheeky grin. Devon silently thanked every deity he could think of. "So," she turned to him, her grin widening and eyebrows waggling, "Are you going to strip in front of Goodwitch again during class?"

Devon hung his head, "I'm never living this down."

* * *

"Aura is the manifestation of our souls. Anyone, or anything, with a soul has the potential to harness their aura and utilise it in a myriad of ways. Many of you have already shown exemplary skill and control of your aura during initiation, but there is always room for improvement."

Teams GRDJ, RWBY and JNPR were sitting in a classroom, listening to Glynda lecture them about aura. Devon was paying particularly close attention to the professor, trying to glean any information that could relate to his lack of it.

"A semblance is the physical form a person's aura can take. Discovering one's semblance appears to occur randomly through continued practice and manipulation of their aura. Accidentally if you will. Many believe an individual's semblance is linked to their personality, however with our limited understanding of aura's mechanics there is little evidence to support this theory. Now can anybody tell me how someone can unlock their aura?"

Pyrrha raised her hand and the teacher gestured for her to speak, "There are only two known ways that someone can have their aura unlocked, one is by having someone else use their own aura to awaken it, or through intense willpower or meditation."

"Very good Miss Nikos. There have also been rare reports of individuals having access to their aura from birth, but they have never been confirmed. Does anyone know why the creatures of Grimm are not able to utilise aura?"

Jaune eagerly raised his hand, to the surprise of the professor and admittedly most of his friends. "Uh... it's because they don't have souls, right? Auras are the manifestation of our soul, so if you don't have one, you can't use it!" he answered happily, a smile coming to his face at being able to answer a question. Devon however, had a less than cheerful reaction to his response, clenching his hand in frustration and a frown forming on his features. Gale noticed her partner's mood and gently placed her hand on his fist, drawing his attention to her, and giving him a reassuring smile. He relaxed a little and returned the gesture with a smaller smile.

"That is correct, well done Mr Arc. There are many uses aura has for prospective huntsmen and huntresses, such as yourselves. In these classes you will experiment with your aura and attempt to gain better control over it. Today we will start by having everyone measure their aura reserves, as we will need to track them during combat classes. Everyone, please take out your scrolls and open the aura calibration application. It should have been installed as a part of the package that was supplied to you on your first day here."

The classroom was soon filled with the tones and beeping of scrolls as the students pulled up the appropriate program. Devon eventually did the same, giving his partner a worried look. She gave him a small shrug and a concerned look before looking back at her own device.

"Now simply follow the steps outlined on the screen and your aura level will be linked to your scroll. Once the other members of your team have done the same, theirs will appear alongside yours on the team status tab. Once you are finished please make your way to the practical room where we will continue the lesson," the stern woman gestured to a door on her right.

Devon watched as Gale tested her aura. She held her scroll with both hands and he saw a faint black shroud start to cover her body.

"That's not ominous at all," he said sarcastically.

His teammate looked at him with a raised eyebrow before turning back to the device. After a moment the shroud died down and he heard a beep from his own scroll. He navigated over to the team status tab to see a headshot of Gale in the bottom left corner, with a green bar also underneath. He looked back up at her and she gestured towards his scroll.

"Go on, you might as well give it a shot," she urged.

He nodded and switched back to the calibrator. He gripped both ends of the scroll like it instructed him to, and waited while the swirl on the screen told him it was testing his aura. After a few seconds the screen went blank then flashed white a few times, before returning to the swirl. He looked to the girl next to him who just shrugged. After returning his attention to the device the swirl stopped, and a message displayed on the screen: 'Aura level unknown'. The application then closed and automatically switched to the team status tab. To his surprise Devon saw his own face, along with the twins' now as well, with a green bar underneath it.

"The fuck?" He looked to his partner once again to see her tapping at her own scroll. She held it up to show him her status screen, with his headshot and green bar in the bottom left corner of it.

"I don't know, I didn't see any flare of aura on you at all. Maybe we should ask Goodwitch?" she offered, standing up.

"Is there a problem Mr Aster?" Devon turned to see the teacher standing next to the prac room doorway, along with his two other teammates, an expectant look on her face. He looked around the room and realised that they were the only people left.

He stood and followed his partner to the door, "No professor, everything is fine." Gale turned to give him a questioning look, but he just whispered in her ear, "After class. I don't want to draw anyone else's attention." She nodded and they followed the twins into the next room.

Glynda made her way to the front of the class and cleared her throat, cutting off the small chatter and gathering their attention. She gestured to the many workbenches surrounding the room, "One perk of aura is the ability to activate and utilise the effects of Dust. Just as there are natural catalysts that can be used to cause them them to react, like those used in dust-powered engines or dust rounds, aura can be used in a similar fashion. With immense training and discipline, some can even harness these materials to great and powerful effect. They are commonly known as dust mages. Today you will experiment with your aura and attempt to activate the dust. I will be monitoring your progress and making sure you do not cause too much damage."

Team GRDJ followed their leader over to one of the workbenches where there were many types of dust laid out. There were a few crystals of different elements and sizes as well as small jars of the powdered form. Gale was the first to try, pouring a small amount of powdered fire dust into her palm. She poured a little of her aura into the dust before she clicked the fingers of her other hand over it. The result was a small flame igniting in her palm. "Party trick," she said with a smirk.

Next to try was Raven. She picked up a light blue crystal and flared some aura around it, before crushing it in her hand. The rest of her team watched as water ran down her arm, before she manipulated it back up and held it in a small ball between her hands. After a moment she flicked the water towards her leader and extinguished the fire in her hand.

"Aww," Gale pouted, shaking her now wet hand, "that was mean. You're really good at that though."

Raven smiled, "Learning from one of the most skilled dust mages in Vale has its perks."

Gale turned to the other members of her team, "Okay, who's next?" Devon and Jade stared blankly at the materials on the table in front of them. "Come on guys it's easy!" their leader chirped, "Just pour a little bit of your aura into the dust and see what happens."

"I-I-I can't. It won't work," Jade said timidly, still looking down at the table.

"Sure it will! You've just gotta believe!" the blonde cheered.

"No, it really won't work," Raven interjected, "It's because of her semblance, her aura doesn't affect dust. We've tried it before but nothing happens."

"Oh, okay. Well I'd ask what your semblance is but we did already agree to leave it as a surprise," Gale turned to her partner, "How about you? The calibrator worked so maybe this will too?"

"Why wouldn't the calibrator work?" Raven asked, frowning.

"Oh right, we never told you two," Gale lowered her voice and leaned towards them so that their classmates wouldn't overhear them, "Mr Mystery over here doesn't have an aura."

Jade spoke up this time, "You haven't unlocked it yet?"

"No, as in I don't have one," he clarified, before whispering just loud enough for them to hear, "Or a soul."

The black haired girls quickly looked at each other, apparently having a silent conversation before turning their eyes back on him. "The only creatures without a so-"

"I KNOW," Devon growled through his teeth, frightening the quiet girl next to him, "but I'm NOT a Grimm."

Raven looked to their leader while her sister continued to stare cautiously him. "Don't worry, I'm positive he's not one of those beasts. He doesn't have bone plates and I haven't seen is eyes go red," Gale tried to placate them, "Besides, he's too sexy to be a monster."

Raven rolled her eyes and Jade blushed a little at that. "Well I've never heard of a person without a soul before. We should probably ask one of the teachers," Raven suggested.

"Damn, we were really hoping you guys would know something," Gale admitted, "In any case, the calibrator worked in the end so maybe this will too?"

"It's worth a shot I guess," Devon agreed as he picked up a green crystal from the table.

"But we saw you using dust with your blades in the forest. They don't have dust chambers as far as I could see, so how were you able to do that if you don't have aura?" Raven asked.

"I... I don't actually know..." Devon confessed as he stared at the gem in his hand, "I massage the powdered form of air and fire dust into the blades, and they... absorb it, I guess is the best way of describing it. I actually discovered that I could do that by accident."

"How?" the quiet girl next to him asked curiously.

"I spilled some on one of the blades once, and when I went to clean it up, the dust was no longer there. I noticed the bladed edge glowing a faint green so I gave it a test swing. Needless to say, the table was ruined..." Devon explained, earning an amused expression from his partner.

"That still doesn't explain how you can harness the dust," Raven pointed out, "If you had no aura to use and no reactant built into your weapons, how on Remnant are you able to use it in your strikes?"

"As I said, I don't know," Devon repeated, "All I know is that I have to think about the dust type switching, and it does. If I think about the dust activating when I swing, it does. I don't know how, I don't know why, but it works. My mother told me that they're very old weapons, so maybe there is an old forging technique that allows a weapon to use dust without all these fancy catalysts? I don't know."

They all stood there in silence, processing the new information, until Gale spoke up, a mischievous grin on her face, "So! You use dust, hey? I can use that knowledge to my advantage if I fight you on Friday."

Raven let out a frustrated sigh and Jade giggled at their leader's antics.

"Mister Aster!" The teens turned to see their stern teacher walking towards them, "You have been requested for a meeting by, Doctor Endel. Apparently his questions are more important than my class," she added with irritation, "You are dismissed and are to head to his office immediately."

Devon nodded with his confusion evident on his face, and placed the dust he was still holding back on the table.

"Can I go with him?" his partner asked.

"Yes I believe that should be fine. You have shown considerable skill with dust manipulation after all, Miss Trine," the professor agreed.

*BOOM!*

Before either could make a move to leave, an explosion rang out on the other side of the room. They turned to see team RWBY covered in soot, Yang's golden hair standing on end, and Weiss screaming at their red hooded leader. Goodwitch sighed and started to make her way over to the explosive team.

After a brief pause of amusement, the pair bade their teammates farewell and made their way out of the classrooms and into the hall. They started to move down the hallways before Devon realised that he had no idea where the professor's office was.

"Do you know where we're going?" he asked his partner.

Gale rolled her eyes, mumbling something about men and directions, before pulling out her scroll and tapping it a few times. She pulled up a map of the school and located their destination on the screen. "This way," she said, leading him down the maze of hallways.

"Wait, we have a map?!" the boy asked in surprise, earning him an unimpressed look.

"Men..." the blonde mumbled under her breath.

* * *

Devon rapped his knuckles against the office door.

"Come in."

He opened it and stepped inside, his partner following closely behind. They looked around the room, taking in the new environment. There were little gadgets, computer chips, small motors and what appeared to be spare android parts littered along the shelves and surfaces around the room. Devon turned to examine who he guessed was the person that called him here. He was a relatively young man for his occupation, looking to be only in his late twenties, if he had to guess. The man had short and spiked wavy light brown hair, with a small amount of similarly coloured stubble, and two piercingly blue eyes sitting behind the dark rimmed glasses he wore. Devon had to admit the older guy could be considered quite attractive, the thought backed up by the way Gale was currently eyeing the professor up, biting her bottom lip a little.

He glanced up at them momentarily before motioning to the two chairs in front of his desk, "Hey guys, make yourselves comfortable. I'll only be a moment." He gave them a friendly smile before returning to what he was doing before they came in. He was poking at what appeared to be a robotic hand of some kind with a screwdriver and a pair of pliers. The partners each took a seat, finding the armchairs to be rather comfortable.

They watched the young professor work for a while before Gale got curious, "Is that an android hand?"

The man put his tools down, apparently done with his tinkering, before replying. "Not quite," he said mysteriously, before closing the open section of casing. He lifted the piece of tech up, revealing it to be hollow, and slided it onto his left hand. He wriggled his fingers a little, showing off the gauntlet, a few wires still exposed at the bottom of it. "This is in fact a part of my battle suit, Sadalsuud. I was just giving it a few of modifications," he clarified.

"What does it do?" the blonde asked, eyeing the piece curiously.

The blue eyed man smiled at them before moving his fingers in some sort of pattern, and they watched as three small metal discs slid out of the inner forearm of the gauntlet, and out onto his palm. The discs slid together, morphing into a small ball that he rolled experimentally between his fingers.

"Technology is amazing, isn't it?" he asked rhetorically, "A bit of dust, a bit of metal and bing bang boom... you've got explosives. These little bad-boys can reduce an Atlesian Crusader Tank to nothing but scrap metal and cables." He let the ball roll down his arm, where it split back into the discs, and returned to their sockets. He slid his hand out of the mechanical armour, only for the gauntlet to float there above his desk. He gently pushed it backwards over his shoulder causing it to float through the air until it came to rest on the shelf behind him.

"Impressive," Gale praised, "Are you a Polarity user or something, sir?"

"Please, call me Jerad," he urged, 'Sir', makes me feel old. I'm only less than a decade older than you after all. And no, I'm not a Polarity user, and that was not my semblance I used. That was simply something I learned while I was a student here. It comes in handy sometimes."

"If I'm going learn how to do cool things like that here, then I can't wait for school to really get going," the blonde announced with excitement, "And the name's Gale, it's a pleasure to meet you Jerad." She gave him her winning smile, and he returned it with his warm one.

"I assure you the pleasure is all mine," he replied, "But enough about me! I'm more interested in your partner over here, Devon is it?."

Devon raised an eyebrow, "Yes, sir."

"Please, it's Jerad," the man protested, "You don't need to be formal with me. I promise I'm as young as I look."

Devon kept up an impassive gaze, "You called for me sir?"

The young professor frowned a little and shrugged at the student's disregard of his request, before his friendly demeanour returned, "That I did! Now I bet you're wondering why I called you here, after all we've never met before and I don't believe you are in any of my classes."

"That is what I have been wondering for about the past ten minutes," the boy replied dryly.

"Well, as I'm sure you are unaware, I am the head of the technology department here at Beacon, as well as being a professor. My job includes the keeping and security of all of the records of our students and staff, maintaining and upgrading the systems that run this fine academy , as well as the research and development of new technologies for use in combat and otherwise. That includes designing and distributing the software package you installed on your first day here."

"Wow!" exclaimed Gale, clearly impressed, "You must be pretty damn smart."

The man chuckled, "Thank you Gale. I won't be so arrogant as to claim that my skills are amazing, but I do pride myself in obtaining as much knowledge as I possibly can. You see, I can't stand ignorance, it causes all sorts of problems. A prime example being the White Fang. So when I don't know something, I do what I can to learn about it." The man gestured to the boy in front of him, "That is why I have called you here Devon. Because a small time ago, one of the applications I developed, the aura calibrator to be exact, took a reading it apparently couldn't handle. It crashed my servers and rebooted the entire system, without my intervention, and left no record of the fault in any of the logs. Now, there are only two possible explanations I could have for this happening: either I am in the presence of the greatest hacker I have ever met, or there is something unique about your aura that my program could not comprehend. So I simply called you down here to ask you which of these it is."

Devon eyed the man curiously, uncomfortable with his prying question, "The most I have ever accomplished with technology, sir, is playing videogames with my sister."

The man's eyes brightened at this and he leaned a little closer, his arms resting on the desk, "I see. So then, what is so special about your aura, that it would cause such a drastic break down of my humble program?"

Devon really didn't want to tell this guy about his aura. After hearing Goddwitch's lecture, he wasn't confident that any of the teachers would have as open a mind as his fellow classmates did. After thinking about it, he really didn't want to jeopardise his chances of still being allowed to attend Beacon. He couldn't ask a teacher for help, and he couldn't reveal his secret. He trusted his team, he had to. He wouldn't have been able to hide it from the people he was spending his next four years rooming with, and they seemed to be willing to help him figure out whatever was going on. He just hoped Pyrrha would respect his privacy on such a delicate subject. He couldn't tell a teacher until he knew what was going on himself. He couldn't risk his goal.

"I don't know, sir."

The teacher's eyebrow raised at that, and he leaned back in his seat, "You don't know, or you won't tell me?"

"No he means he really doesn't know. We dis-" Devon shut his partner up mid sentence with a subtle kick to her shin. She frowned at him and he gave her a silencing glare.

Jerad sighed, a serious expression on his face, "I do not wish to badger you Mister Aster and I will not press you any further. I am still a teacher however, and I will do what is necessary to protect my students if I consider something a threat. So I must ask you this: Is your aura dangerous?"

"No sir."

His warm smile returned to his face, "Alrighty then. Thank you for your time, I do not wish to keep you from your next class. You are free to go."

Devon nodded once in acknowledgement and rose from his seat.

"My door is always open if you ever wish to talk," the professor added as he turned and made his way to the door.

"I'll be out in a sec 'D'!" his partner called out behind him. He turned to give her a questioning look and received a wink in return. Devon shrugged and stepped outside, letting out a long breath. He really hoped his partner wasn't going behind his back right now. He wanted to find out all he could on his own before he went to a teacher. If he could figure it out without their help, the less he would draw attention to himself. He wasn't one for the limelight after all.

After short wait, Gale emerged from the office and matched her partner's pace as he started towards their next class. "So, what did you talk to him about?" he asked her.

"Oh I just hit him with the regular Gale Trine charm, but apparently teachers aren't allowed to 'mingle' with students. Stupid school policy..." she mumbled at the end, surprising her teammate. Then again, he should really be used to her antics by now, even if it had only been three days since they first met.

"You tried to sleep with a teacher. Of course you did..." he sighed.

"Hey, it's not like he's old or anything. He's only in like, his twenties or something," she defended. They walked in silence until they neared their next class before Gale spoke up again, "Why didn't you want to tell him? He seemed really nice and extremely smart, and it sounded like he wanted to help."

Devon stopped her in the middle of the hallway, and looked into her curious green eyes. "I was thinking, while you two were chatting about his armour, and I've decided that I don't want help," he explained, holding his hand up when she looked like she was about to argue with him, "I don't want help from a teacher. What happens if I reveal my condition and for some reason I am no longer permitted to study here? What if they deem me an unknown and possible threat and keep me locked up for everyone's protection? You saw the reaction Raven had, and the staff would take it more seriously. I need to study here, I need to get stronger or I will never be able to achieve my goal. If you are still willing to offer it, I would appreciate your help. You _and_ the twins. If we can figure out what's wrong with me without having to tell anyone else, then that is the best outcome I can ask for. If we discover that, for whatever reason, I am indeed a threat to the people here, then I will quit from Beacon and leave. Please don't fight me on this, I've made up my mind. This is what I have to do."

Gale took a moment to answer, staring back into his eyes as she seemed too contemplate his proposal. Eventually her amazing smile crept out onto her face, "Sure 'D'. And of course I'll help you, I'm sure the girls will too. We've only been a team for less than two days and we're all still getting used to each other, so naturally everyone's still a bit wary of each other. Just because we're on the same team doesn't mean we've earned each other's trust yet. But we will, we just need to give ourselves a bit of time."

Devon smiled. He liked seeing this side of his leader; calm, considerate, understanding and above all else, smart. She knew how people worked, and she knew what they needed. This side of her was usually hidden beneath all the flirting and mischief, but when she showed it, it always made him smile. It was times like these where he felt like he'd know her his whole life. There was just something about her that instantly made you feel comfortable being in her presence.

"Come on, let's get to class. And hey! You kept you're pants on in front of Miss Goodwitch lass session. I bet you're just teasing her, reeling her in with curiosity, before you snatch her up have your way with her."

Devon rolled his eyes, his smile still on his face, as he continued towards their class, "You _know_ teachers can't sleep with students, 'Oh Mighty Leader'."

Gale pouted next to him, "Stupid rules..."

* * *

**Humour. Exposition. Exposition. Exposition. Damn. In the wise words of Yang Xiao Long: "That was a thing". I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter. It took me about seven rewrites of their chat with the newly introduced professor before I was even remotely happy with it. I promise the next chapter will have more action in it than the last three, but I needed to do some character building and cement a few ideas. **

**Another thing I want to say, is that I hate plot holes. If I have written something that contradicts something else in an earlier chapter, or if there's something that should logically be included or considered that I haven't, please let me know. Even if it's something small like a character's mood changing too drastically, something that doesn't follow canon or even if a fork does something it shouldn't (comedic instances aside) I would love to know so that I can review and fix it.**

**As always, thanks for taking time to read and feel free to critique, praise and review. It helps. I'm always open to any ideas anyone has as well. If I like it and it works, I'll add it. Cheers.**

**P.S. I wonder if anyone can pick the general theme of my OCs from the two weapon names I've introduced thus far... :p**


	8. Combat Pt 1

**Edited as I realised I had both Ren and Nora fight Russel. Oops.**

* * *

The next two days had gone by relatively uneventfully. The twins had reluctantly agreed to keep Devon's condition a secret, and had even offered to help him find out what was wrong with him, much to his surprise. After explaining what had happened on the date, Raven had attempted to unlock his aura for herself, suggesting that Pyrrha's attempt could have simply been a flawed one. Despite her effort though, she too came to the same conclusion as the redhead.

As the aura calibrator had worked, if somewhat unorthodoxly, they tried practising small aura techniques to see if any of its aspects were available to him. After he failed to raise aura shields, imbue a punch with aura or even raise an aura flare at all, they quickly abandoned this practice however. On Thursday afternoon Jade had suggested meditation, to which Devon agreed, having run out of any other ideas.

So it was on this afternoon that he found himself in Beacon's gardens sitting under the shade of a large tree, it's leaves blocking out the sun's rays as he listened to the quiet girl instruct him on his task.

"You need to block everything out, the sounds, the smells even the feeling of the wind against your skin. Ideally you would have has little clothing on as possible, but," she blushed a little at that, "given where we are and what happened with Goodwitch... that's not really an option. Once everything else is blocked out, your soul is easier to locate. Now, I say locate, but you have to think of it less like a search and more like leaving everything empty so as to force it out to fill in the void. But, you need to know that once you have entered this state, nothing will return you from it until your mind begins to register senses again. Nothing I do can wake you, and could stay like this for quite some time. If and when you find it, you must let it consume you. It will undoubtedly feel strange and a little alien, but eventually your body and mind will adapt to the new presence. Theoretically, once this occurs your aura will be unlocked, but with your condition... I don't know."

Devon crossed his legs and leaned his back against the trunk of the tree, the rough bark scratching him a little through his tank top. "I'm willing to give anything a try at this point. Even if it only gives me the slightest hint of what is wrong with me, it will be worth it," he stated calmly, "How do I start?"

The jade eyed girl sat down on her knees in front of him. "Close your eyes, block out vision and be absorbed only in the darkness," she said softly.

He did so, the shade helping to block out any light that would have attempted to creep in through his eyelids. He nodded for her to continue.

"Now relax your muscles, but keep your body still, movement will only distract you from your task."

He rested his head against the trunk, letting the muscles in his neck relax a little, while still keeping himself upright.

"Good, now focus on what you can feel. Focus on the push and pull of the breeze, the tug of your clothing trying to follow, and feel how your chest rises and lowers with each breath. Now that they are all you are aware of, remove them. Remove the feelings, forget the sensations, and focus only on what is left."

Devon did so, turning his thoughts away from the light breeze and instead found all he could focus on was the sweet scent of the flowers around them and the sounds of the natural landscape.

"Now, notice the slight perfume of the roses, the damp smell of the pond and the odour of your own body. Let the scents describe the world around you, taking notice of every little detail. Once you see everything, close your eyes, and deny yourself the sight."

Devon's breathing slowed as he ignored the smells, now only focusing of the sounds of his surroundings, and the voice of the girl in front of him.

"Now listen to the calls and the chatter of the creatures around you, the chirping of the birds, the footfalls of scurrying animals and the insects buzzing. Once you can feel all of the them, remove them too, leaving only the sounds of the rustling of the leaves and the ripples of the pond as they lap at its edges. Once you can see the trees and the water, block them out once again until there is nothing left, but me."

He followed her instructions and removed the world from his mind, floating in a void with only the sound of his teammate's voice to keep him company.

"Now that there is only me, focus as hard as you can. Focus on the tone of my voice, the flow of the words as I speak and let them fill your mind. One by one hear each word with perfect clarity," her voice gradually became softer and softer as she spoke, eventually reducing to a whisper, "give your undivided attention to it and forget it, only to focus on the next one as..."

Her voice had diminished so much by now that he could no longer hear her. HIs focus had been so completely on her voice that once it was gone, he truly felt completely empty. His mind was clear, and he was floating in a void, not even the darkness had followed him here. There was literally nothing now, no sounds, no smells, no sensations. Nothing. And as he started to become lost within the emptiness, he realised something.

He was alone again.

At that moment he knew he'd found it, whatever it was he was looking for. He could feel... something, on his right. Well, in his current state he couldn't really determine what direction was left or right, up or down or really any sense of spatial orientation. But whatever this feeling was, it had an opposite. One was warm, the other cold. One light, the other dark. One soft, the other hard. But no longer were they just there, he could feel them moving, moving _against_ each other. They danced around the void, taking up space where there was none and crashing against one another with increasing intensity.

He became consumed by the tide of the sensations, disorienting any sense of understanding, until everything became a confused and sickly mess. An apt description for what happened next, as he jolted forward from his resting position, all of his senses flooding back to him at once, as he wretched up his bowels onto the grass before him.

The stench was most prominent in his confused sensory state, causing him to unload his stomach once more, as he pushed himself away from the patch of sullied ground and rolled onto his back. As his mind attempted to return to its fully functioning capacity, he tried to bring his breathing under control. He tasted the bile in his mouth, and tried to spit what he could out onto the grass next to him.

He blinked a couple of times to adjust his eyes to the blinding amount of light that he had so suddenly been subjected to, and as his vision returned he noticed the girl above him, her dark hair hanging down around her face, gently tickling his own. Her worry was evident in her eyes, as was her apparent shock.

"Devon! Devon! Can you hear me!?" her voice slowly changed from muffled noises to frightened shouts.

He tried to sit up, but the strength was yet to return to his arms and he fell back down immediately. "Yeah, I can hear you," he groaned weakly.

"Are you okay?" she asked worriedly, "What happened?" She helped him sit up and started to rub a hand on his back, trying to alleviate the churning in his stomach.

He grunted as he rose, a headache had started to form, "I'm fine. I think. I do have a bit of a headache but that's about it." He sat there for a couple of seconds as she continued to comfort him. "What was that? And more importantly, did it work?"

She shook her head, "I can't feel your aura, and it usually flares when you unlock it, but I didn't see anything. Are you sure you're alright? I've never seen someone react like that before, and you were under for over two hours."

"Is that long?" he asked.

"Most are only in that state for less an hour, usually around thirty minutes," she explained, before asking, "What happened?"

"I'm not quite sure. Everything was exactly as you described it would be, the emptiness, the void. But when I began to feel something... it was like my body was trying to tear itself apart," he described, leaning his head back and breathing in deeply to try and override the taste in his mouth with the fresh air around him, "Whatever it was, it just felt... wrong." A small pout came to Jade's face, and Devon frowned in concern, "What's wrong?"

"I'm so sorry. I put you through all of that and it didn't even work..." she said softly, looking as though she was about to burst into tears at any moment.

Devon quickly leaned over and wrapped his arms around her, rubbing his hand on her back. He wasn't very good at all this touchy feely stuff, but he wanted to comfort her. So, he did what she had for him, hoping it would help.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, it was my decision to attempt it. I asked for help and you gave it to me, even though you didn't have to. Instead I should be thanking you. You gave me another option, and spent a perfectly nice afternoon with me with my problems, when you could have been having fun. So... thank you, Jade."

He pulled back to look into her eyes. The sparkling gems had gone from wobbly and tear filled, to a bright and calm happy, and her cheeks were flushed a little. "No problem," she said with a smile, "I was happy to do it."

Devon smiled back and turned to look over at the spot where he had hurled up his lunch, to see the offending substance now soaking into the ground. "I should probably bury that or it's going to ruin the smell around here," he suggested, as Jade helped him stand.

Jade giggled, "Yeah, you frightened a couple off when you did that." Her expression changed from one of happiness to one of slight concern, "Are you sure you're going to be alright?"

Devon moved some dirt with his foot to cover the pile of half-digested food, "Yeah I'm sure. I could use a drink though, the taste is horrible."

The black haired girl giggled again and made her way to his side, as they started through the gardens on their way back to the dorm. Despite her also being eighteen, Devon couldn't help but be reminded of his sister when he looked at the timid girl. Her happiness would infect those around her, and she was just so damn adorable when she was sad. Thankfully though, only happy memories returned to him now, memories of weekends spent in the gardens near their home, playing hide and seek in the bushes and climbing trees. Afternoons spent at the nearby lake having a splash war or skimming rocks, as their parents cuddled on the bank, watching in happiness.

He looked down at the girl next to him, and she must have felt his gaze because she turned her head up to look back at him.

"...What?" she asked, her eyes dancing with curiosity.

"Nothing," he replied simply, giving her a rare smile of happiness.

* * *

"You're going down, girl! Prepare to feel the wrath of team RWBY!"

"Oh I don't think so, bimbo. We've got a surprise or two up our sleeves, for sure."

It was Friday, combat day. Every first year was sat in the stands overlooking the main combat arena, all eager to let loose after four days of tedious classes. Well, most of them.

Devon was decidedly less eager to fight, considering his condition, and Jade looked almost terrified. Yang was currently locked in a battle of trash talk with his team leader, both apparently very confident that their team was going to win the fights, despite the high probability that they would not actually end up paired against each other.

Raven, unimpressed with the trash talk, spoke quietly to the boy next to her, "What are you going to do about your... unique quality? If you are injured during your fight and your aura doesn't heal you, Goodwitch is bound to ask questions. You wanted to avoid those didn't you?"

Devon let out a long breath, "I guess I'll just do my best to not get hit. Or I could forfeit if I feel like I'm in danger of exposing myself." He really didn't want the attention of his whole cohort when he was dragged out of the arena, bloodied and broken, but there was no way of getting out of the fight without having to come clean.

"Well in that case you've really got two options. If you get a big, heavy hitter, try and avoid getting slugged until you tire them out. If you get a fast, nimble or endurance fighter, you'll have to try and end it as quickly as possible, either with an unrelenting assault or a fast and powerful strike. In either case, forcing submission if you get the opportunity is preferable."

Devon turned to his partner, who had suddenly appeared on the bench next to him, not unlike their encounter in the cafeteria on the day of initiation. He raised an eyebrow at her, "You are quite the tactician there Little Miss. Where on Remnant did all that intelligence come from, all of a sudden?" he teased.

"Well, I was made leader of this fine team for a reason, young sir," she boasted, "But in any case; worst comes to worst, you say you have poor control over your aura. It's not entirely false either, you have crap control because there is nothing _to_ control."

"Somehow I don't think Goodwitch will fall for that," he remarked, turning to watch as the first two combatants were called up, and made their way onto the stage. The two very attractive young women toot battle ready stances at opposite sides of the arena. "Seriously. Is every girl here a fucking supermodel? What is with this school..." he muttered under his breath.

His partner however, caught his comment and smiled her killer smile, "Awww, thanks 'D'! I'm flattered! And by the looks of things, so is the rest of your team."

He turned around to the girls on his other side, and sure enough found a blushing Jade trying to hide her face from him. Even Raven was having trouble keeping a small smile from creeping into her unimpressed stare.

"Hey, you said you weren't looking for a relationship, but that doesn't mean you can't have fun. We've all got our urges. Maybe you could find someone with a mutual desire to... alleviate them with?" his partner suggested with a sly smile on her face.

The black eyed girl next to him interjected before the conversation could go any further, "You know, now is not the best time to be getting distracted. You've got a plan, but it only has a chance of working if you're focussed."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," the blonde conceded, turning back to watch the match in action.

After a few matches, including one where Jaune got completely pummelled by the leader of the team that Devon had picked to be this year's troublemakers, one of their team members was finally called up to fight.

"Next is Ruby Rose and Gale Trine," the teacher announced, " Please make your way to the stage."

"Aww, I was hoping to save the best 'til last. Oh well, watch me do my thang!" their leader stood up to head down to the arena.

When they made it to the floor, the little red girl pointed to the blonde, "It's ON, Gale! My baby is gonna show you why she's the best!" She was dressed in the red corset/combat skirt getup he'd seen her in on the airship and on the cliff before initiation. The fifteen year old then did something very un-little-girl-like, whipping out a massive scythe that also appeared to be a rifle of some kind, and embedded it into the floor.

"That... is a big scythe," Devon observed.

"It appears to also be a rifle," Raven added.

"A scythle?" her sister suggested. Both Raven and Devon turned to look at the girl, and crumbled under the adorable combination of cuteness and confusion on her face.

He turned back to see his partner return the trash talk, drawing her gun from its holster, "You better be ready! I ain't going easy on you just because you're Yang's little sis."

She was dressed in the same casual outfit she was wearing when they met for the first time, a grey tank top and tight black shorts, but there were some new additions to her getup this time. She had a string of magazines, most likely for her gun, running along the underside of her arm, attached by a black sleeve that ran from her wrist up to just below her shoulder, as well as two attachments on her back. One looked like a grip for a larger gun, and the other a long rectangular barrel with a scope, as well as a few clips of ammunition on her hips that looked too big for the gun in her hand. Devon had to admit, he was eager to see what his leader could do.

"If you are quite done with your banter girls, you may begin," Goodwitch announced, moving back to observe the match.

Gale turned her head towards her partner in the stands, and he watched in surprise as she winked at him, her right eye having changed from a bright green to a mesmerising mixture of orange and purple upon reopening. When she returned her attention to the girl opposite her, she quickly took aim and unloaded her clip, and Devon was surprised to find that there was no recoil or sound except for a quick '_thmbp_'.

Ruby was fast however, twirling her concoction of a weapon around, deflecting or blocking every shot. Eventually Gale's clip ran dry and the girl in red took the opening, in a display of speed he had never seen before, she had crossed two thirds of the distance between them in an instant. She stopped suddenly to block an attack as, in an unorthodox fashion, Gale had apparently fired her empty magazine at the hooded girl, a small fiery explosion the result of the action.

The scythe wielder took a moment to recollect herself as Gale slid the next magazine up her arm and into the gun, the action re-cocking the it, before dashing around the stage with blinding speed to avoid the oncoming hail of lead.

Despite her seemingly impossible speed, Gale was somehow managing to land hits, reducing the girl's aura level steadily. Apparently giving up on her strategy to dodge, Ruby fired the rifle part of her weapon and launched herself across the arena and towards her opponent, taking a few rounds in the process. Just as the black and red haired girl drew her scythe back in preparation for a swing at his partner, Gale moved her gun behind her back, only to bring, what appeared to be a sniper rifle, back instead of the smaller armament, the new weapon having the same blue markings as the first.

As Ruby brought the blade of her weapon around in an attempt to cleave her opponent, the blonde brought the barrel of her long weapon up to block the attack. The scythe failed to connect with its intended target and the petite girl continued past her, to land with both feet planted against the wall of the arena, ready to pounce back at her prey.

After blocking the swipe, Gale had run and dived into a roll, coming out of it on the opposite side of the stage, lying on the ground with her rifle trained on her competitor, her eye behind the scope. Before the rose could even get off the wall, the blonde had begun to unload the heavier rounds at her, still quiet and recoil free, forcing her to stop and defend against the onslaught.

Devon took the chance to examine his partner's new weapon closely. He recognised the barrel and grip as those that had been sitting on her back, and he could now see her smaller weapon attached in the middle to both new extensions. The larger clip was attached to the barrel, just after where the handgun ended.

Despite getting a decent amount of shots in, the shooter had to reload again, and again the scythe wielder capitalised on this opening. Ruby shot forward, swinging her weapon in an attempt to deal some serious damage. Forgoing reloading, Gale rolled and brought her weapon up again to block the blade, before rolling again onto her feet. The rose did not give her a chance to reload her weapon however, attacking the blonde relentlessly from every direction, dashing back and forth, her weapon dancing around her.

Gale did her best to block the flurry of attacks but could not keep up with the sheer speed of her rival, and eventually took a particularly powerful blow to her chest, the momentum behind it launching her across the floor. Her flight stopped when she collided, hard, against the wall of the arena, causing the structure to crack a little from the impact.

Devon glanced up at the monitors above that were displaying the fighters' aura levels. The shots that his partner had managed to land, had taken a considerable chunk out of Ruby's reserves. That combined with the continuous use of what he guessed was the red girl's semblance, her unfathomable speed, had reduced her to the yellow, about a third of her aura remaining.

His leader was faring a similar fate, the blocks with her rifle no doubt had consumed some of her aura to prevent her arms from breaking. That, and the blow she had just taken had reduced her to a similar aura level.

He watched in confusion as his partner pulled herself up from the floor and returned the rifle components to her back, reloading her handgun as she turned to grin at the hooded girl. "Final bout, whaddya reckon Rubes?" she offered, the grin never leaving her face."

Having paused for a momentary breather, Ruby looked up at the blonde, a similar grin coming to her face, "You betcha."

At that, both girls started to run directly at each other, Ruby with her scythe extended out behind her, the blade one hundred and eighty degrees to the shaft, and Gale with her gun held upside down in her hand and pointing backwards.

Wait... what?

Devon frowned in confusion at his partner's ridiculous hold on her weapon, until the girls met in the centre of the arena, and realised why she was using such a strange grip. As the scythe wielder brought her blade around to strike her opponent, Gale fired her gun... somehow... from that grip. This particular shot was different from her others however, as instead of a silenced and recoil free one, this shot let out a loud crack and actually propelled her hand forward.

He watched, dumbfounded as Gale _punched_ the bladed edge of the scythe, sending it down to become embedded in the floor. Ruby however, did not come to a halt as her weapon did, and flailed as her momentum carried her past the handle, it slipping from her grip, and tumbled into the ground.

Just as the girl managed to recover and stand up, the barrel of a gun was pressed firmly against her temple. Gale was standing side on to the rose, arm outstretched and holding her weapon in one hand against her head. A wicked smile came to her face.

"Dodge this."

A silenced round fired from the gun, hitting the small girl at point blank range and knocking her back to the floor. The room was silent for a long second before the stage lights turned off and a buzzer sounded. Devon looked back up at the monitors to see his partner's level borderline red, and her opponent's level a borderline lower.

"Miss Rose's aura has fallen into the red. Gale Trine is the victor of the match," Goodwitch announced, bringing everyone's attention back to her as an exhausted Gale helped a pouting Ruby to her feet. "Spectacular fight ladies. You both showed intense determination and careful tactics. You adapted attack strategy as required and kept your opponent on their toes. In future, might I suggest you not give your opponent such a glaring opening by asking if they wish to engage in a 'final bout'?"

"No worries Miss," a somewhat breathless Gale chirped.

"Very well. Miss Trine, would you please take Miss Rose to the medical bay? She looks as though she is about to collapse," the teacher commented, examining the small girl.

Gale looked at the girl leaning on her for support, before looking up at the stern woman with a pleading look in her eyes, the right one having now returned to its original green colour, "In that case could you make it so that none of my teammates fight until I get back? I want to watch their matches."

"Very well," the professor agreed, "In that case, Lie Ren and Russel Thrush, please make your way to the stage."

* * *

Devon watched the next couple of matches with increasing worry and awe. While he was amazed at the skill and power of his classmates, one thing was becoming abundantly clear. With their aura and semblances, compared to him, they were gods.

Sure, he could take down plenty of Grimm with ease, but Grimm didn't have aura; as he had been reminded quite frequently recently. The sheer variety of ways that the force could be utilised in combat meant that he would be hard pressed to find a way to counter it, and all of a sudden, his plan looked a lot less likely to succeed. Tiring out an opponent would take even longer if they had aura keep them going, and in order to end a match quickly he would have to deal an extremely powerful blow that he was not sure he was capable of.

He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see a pair of black eyes with jade pupils staring back. He was still getting used to how strange and admittedly creepy Raven's eyes were, but at the moment they had a comforting warmth in them.

"Don't worry, you'll be fine. You took out that entire pack of Creeps after all," she reassured him.

"I did, but that is nothing compared to a person. People are smarter, and they have aura... and giant scythles of death," he countered, dropping his head into his hands, "I'm so fucked..."

"Language," the brunette scolded, turning her attention back to the current fight, "You just have to do your best."

"Or, if he is fighting a girl, he could just take his shirt off and paralyse her with a view of his sweet body!"

Devon rolled his eyes as his partner took her seat beside to him, "Impressive fight, you are quite the swift marksman. That's one interesting weapon you have there too."

Gale had her weapon out in full sniper rifle form and was resting it against her shoulder. "Thanks! Ruby's so damn fast though, it was tough to keep up. And yeah, Antares is pretty sweet, the perfect ranged stealth weapon. He's silenced and has no recoil, except when I want to use dust," she explained proudly.

"Yeah I wanted to ask, how does the dust in your weapon work?" Devon asked, curious as to how she performed her unorthodox attacks.

"Well, the magazines are lined with fire dust, and if I fire while it's empty it will eject at high speed, almost as fast as a normal round, and combust on impact. As for the up-close-and-personal move at the end? There's a trigger on the bottom of the magazine, so holding it in the reverse grip I can hit the trigger to release some air dust into the chamber as a round fires, causing the noise and the propulsion. I have to coat my hand in aura though, or else risk breaking my fingers," she elaborated.

"Something _I_ want to know, is how your gun is silenced and doesn't recoil," Raven questioned, giving the weapon a critical gaze, "And how does it go from firing pistol rounds to sniper rounds while still using the same trigger."

"Oh, that one's simple," the blonde informed, "Antares is a rail gun. There's no recoil or noise because electromagnets are launching the projectiles instead of combustion. As for the sniper rounds, when I attach the... attachments, the pistol magazine is sealed off, and then, as it's a rail gun, the sniper rounds can be fired from where the magazine is on the barrel. Gotta love science and stuff."

Devon nodded, impressed, but their attention was returned to the arena when the next pairing was announced, "The next match will be between Jade Ferinhir and Weiss Schnee."

They all looked over to a nervous Jade and watched her make her way down to the floor. Now that he watched her, Devon realised she was dressed in exactly the same fashion as their leader.

He turned to said blonde with a raised eyebrow, "Why are you, Jade and Raven dressed in exactly the same clothes? For that matter, why did you make me swap my black pants for grey ones before we came to class?"

A massive smile made its way onto his partner's face, "Because! I thought, as a way to bond as a team, we could all wear matching outfits! I asked the girls and they said so long as their getup didn't have anything too long that they could get tangled up in, it doesn't really matter what they wear. Although, black eyed beauty over there insisted the attire stay modest. I did what I could."

"That still doesn't explain my pants," he pointed out.

"You're a boy," she stated plainly.

"I'm glad you noticed," he replied dryly, "What does that have to do with it?"

"Well, we're girls, so grey on top, black on bottom. You're a boy, so black on top grey on bottom. Simple," she explained giving him a sweet smile.

He face-palmed at her logic, but he had to praise her on her choice of clothing. The tight pants showed off her smooth legs while the top did a good job of accentuating her... assets. He was surprised Raven had agreed to such an outfit. He quickly turned his attention back to the arena before he ended up staring.

His jade eyed teammate had made it to the floor now and he examined her weapon as she pulled it off her back. It was a bladed disc, more like a ring as it had a hollow centre where she was holding it with her hand. The colour of the weapon matched that of her hair, except for the grey sharpened edge, but other than that there was nothing all that spectacular about it, so Devon had to wonder how she would fare against the acclaimed heiress.

He also noticed a strange marking on her right shoulder, before his attention was taken by some chatter to his right. He turned to see Ruby walking up to the rest of her team, apparently fine, with a cheery smile on her face.

"Looks like 'Little Red' is fine," he commented, glancing at his partner.

"Yeah, she was just exhausted," Gale confirmed, "Doc just wanted to give her a check-up to make sure."

They returned their attention to the stage, watching as Jade idly twirled her weapon around her finger. He heard a chuckle to his left and turned to see Raven with a confident smirk on her face, "She's got this. That heiress doesn't stand a chance."

"What do you mean?" Gale asked, looking at her curiously.

"Well by the looks of things, the Schnee has a rapier with dust chambers. A Huntress with a rapier usually relies pretty heavily on dust or aura in combat to make up for a lack of versatility. Considering she's a Schnee, I'd say she is more than most," she explained, and they watched as indeed the white haired girl drew a rapier with revolver style dust chambers at the hilt.

"Why would that be a disadvantage though? Dust is a pretty powerful substance if you can wield it properly, and if she relies on it then it would be a safe bet she is skilled at using it," Gale reasoned, confused by her teammate's confidence.

"Yes, that may be true, but against my sister, it won't matter. Just watch. Despite her somewhat reserved and unsure nature, in combat she's a confident and devastatingly powerful force," she added mysteriously, and Devon returned his gaze to the girl in the arena. When he looked closer he was surprised find the timid girl he knew was gone, and the one before them had a determined stare and a very uncharacteristic confident smirk on her lips.

"You may begin," Goodwitch declared, and the entire class watched on in astonishment as the small black haired girl launched herself through the air at her opponent. Her jump took her a good few metres into the air with a force that should not have been capable with her small frame. As she reached the top of her arc she spun herself and flung her weapon towards Weiss with the added momentum.

The fencer brought her rapier up just in time to deflect it, sending it bouncing into the floor and curving back towards its owner. Jade managed to launch three more attacks before finally landing on the ground, tucking into a roll.

As soon as she did, Weiss's weapon revolved and her sword became covered in a faint red glow. Without pausing, she gave a swipe in her opponent's direction, sending an arc of fire at her. Jade quickly rolled to her feet and turned to face the oncoming blast, holding her disc in front of her body. The fire connected and the resulting explosion covered his teammate in smoke, shrouding her from the everyone's eyes.

As the smoke, rather dramatically, cleared it revealed Jade, standing firm and unscathed, behind what appeared to be a round blade edged shield about as big as her upper body. He watched in awe as she twisted the shield with her hand, causing it to fold down, in a spiral fashion, back into her disc. This time however, the edge of the weapon was glowing a faint red, similar to how the heiress' had before the attack.

"Here we go," Raven said next to him, "Now she really gets to show off."

He could see the surprise on the white haired girl's face, but she quickly wiped it off and replaced it with focus, levelling her rapier at the girl in front of her. She didn't have much time to prepare though, as Jade spun and launched another attack at her. Devon watched as symbols appeared beneath the fencer and she was suddenly launched backwards, just in time to avoid the fiery explosion that resulted when the disc collided with the spot she had been moments ago. The weapon curved back once again to its owner, who snatched it out of the air and started forward into a sprint.

Weiss had to contain her surprise at the explosion she had narrowly missed, and revolved her weapon again before spinning on the spot and driving her rapier into the ground. A trail of large icicles formed along the stage, shooting towards Jade, but the girl simply switched back to her shield and continued to charge directly at the oncoming attack. As she met with the ice, she brought her shield up in front of her and braced as she crashed through the attack with surprising force.

As the ice shattered around her the shards appeared to be drawn in to her weapon, leaving the path clear behind her. She eventually barrelled into a shocked heiress, who was knocked down from the blow, and continued past her before jumping and swiping with her disc, back in Weiss's direction.

The girl of white had just enough time to roll out of the way of the arc of ice that crashed into the floor next to her. She got back to her feet, her frustration clear on her face, and her chambers rotated once more. She made motions with her left hand and two of what Devon now recognised as glyphs, appeared, one below and one above his teammate.

She pointed her rapier upward, and Devon watched on in horror as Jade was trapped in a chamber of electricity. The bolts struck down from the top glyph to the bottom, and the black haired girl cried out in pain as she was continuously shocked, her limbs seizing up as she collapsed to the floor, dropping her weapon.

The attack continued for ten agonizing seconds, until the fencer lowered her weapon and bent over, clearly exhausted from the large use of aura. Jade continued to convulse on the ground until she reached out to grab her weapon, and as soon as she did, the convulsions became less severe and she forced herself to stand.

Both fighters had lost a some aura by now, but that last attack had left Jade significantly lower than Weiss. As soon as her opponent was back on her feet the heiress cast another glyph beneath herself and dashed towards her, bearing down on her with a flurry of strikes. Jade did her best to block the blows with her shield but a few still made it past her defences and her aura was nearing the red.

Just as it looked to all be over though, Jade shifted her shield back down to its disc form and narrowly dodged a strike to her face. The next strike went for her chest and she managed to sidestep it, holding out her weapon so that the rapier slipped through the empty centre of it, and she twisted it, trapping the sword and wrenching it free from the heiress' grip. She threw the stolen weapon across the arena, before changing her weapon back into the shield and bashing Weiss in the face with it.

The white haired girl dropped to the ground from the blow, and before she could react, Jade was over her, holding the edge of her disc to the girl's throat.

"I-I yield!" the heiress called out and a moment later the buzzer sounded, announcing the end of the match. Jade returned her weapon to her back and offered her hand to the girl below her. Weiss stood, either ignoring or not seeing the gesture, and dusted herself off. "Congratulations," she said politely, but sincerity never made it into her voice, "That was well fought." She turned on her heel and made her way to her weapon.

Devon looked up to check the final aura levels of the match. Jade's was well in the yellow but Weiss had lost almost none, the only reason she had was likely from her lightning attack. His teammate had done well to change the tide of the fight when she recognised she could not win through attrition.

"Miss Schnee has conceded. Jade Ferinhir is the victor of the match," Goodwitch declared, "That is a unique ability you have Miss Ferinhir. This was perhaps an unfair pairing for you Miss Schnee on your first week. In any case, learning to cover your weaknesses is paramount in becoming a successful Huntress. I hope you can learn from this experience."

Weiss retrieved her weapon and nodded to the Huntress, "Of course, Professor." She turned and made her way back to the stands, not sparing them another glance.

The black haired girl made her way back to her own team, a dejected look on her face and all traces of the confident combatant, gone. She sat down next to her sister and stared into her lap.

Raven wrapped an arm around her shoulder, "Relax, the Ice Queen's probably not used to being so underpowered. Besides, she could use a bit of humility, knock her down a notch or two."

"...I was just trying to be polite..." the timid girl said, the disappointment evident in her voice.

"Oh don't worry about it," Gale spoke up, drawing all of their attention, "If she's in a team with Yang, she'll be sociable in no time. Yang has a... way with people." They all turned to look at team RWBY, where Weiss had arrived, and watched as Ruby tried to console the girl in white and assure her that she had fought well.

Devon returned his gaze to his jade eyed teammate, his curiosity getting the better of him, "So, was that your semblance or just your weapon?"

"Umm... well..."she started, before her sister jumped in.

"It's a combination of both. Her semblance is 'Dust Deconstruction', she is can stop and absorb any form of activated dust, be it either by someone's aura or by reaction. However, she can only seem to use it with her weapon, Tyndareus, as a conduit. In shield form she can 'deconstruct' the dust and absorb it into her weapon, then she can 'reconstruct' it when she attacks with the disc," Raven explained, "That's why the Schnee never stood a chance. If she relies on dust, she won't have much to back it up when it's gone."

"That's so coooool!" Gale gushed.

"I thought you said she couldn't use dust?" Devon questioned, confused at his teammate's conflicting information.

"I said she couldn't _activate_ dust," Raven clarified, "Not that she couldn't use it."

"Ooh! And how did you _jump_ like that?" his partner interjected again, "You were practically flying across the stage!"

"I was just using my aura to... boost the strength in my legs. Kind of like how you made your arms stronger when you were blocking," Jade elaborated, her increase in confidence making it into her voice.

"You'll have to teach us how to do that," Gale insisted, "It seems like it could be an extremely useful skill to have."

"Sure, although I don't know if..." the timid girl started, her uncertain gaze wandering over to Devon.

He sighed, "Yeah, I know. You guy's shouldn't stop yourselves from training your aura just because I can't join in. My incapability shouldn't stop you from growing. I'll just practice trying not to get hit..."

"That's the spirit!" their leader cheered, "Always think positive."

Their discussion was interrupted by a markedly large explosion in the arena before them. They turned to see a boy with short brown hair and a sword, collapsed on the floor with a giggling girl in pink standing opposite him. The girl had a large hammer resting on her shoulder and an even bigger grin plastered on her face

The buzzer sounded and Professor Goodwitch stepped forward, "Mister Bronzewing's aura has fallen into the red. Nora Valkyrie is the victor of the match."

"Well, at least I'm not against her..." Devon said under his breath with a small amount of relief. He didn't want to think what would have happened to him if he had been caught in that explosion with his lack of aura.

"Stop worrying! You'll be fine," his partner reassured, punching his shoulder lightly.

"To be honest, I'm just hoping I'll get paired with Pyrrha," he admitted, "She would at least go easy on me, seeing as she knows about my disability. I hope."

"Blake Belladonna and Raven Ferinhir, please make your way to the stage," the Professor requested.

Raven rose from her seat. "Laat zwarte regen op u," she muttered quietly, before turning to her team, "Let's do this."

* * *

**Hope you guys enjoyed that one. Fight scenes take a surprising amount of planning to do well, at least I hope it's done well :)**

**You may have noticed I didn't touch on Gale's semblance, but that will come up soon enough. And for her eye I imagined something similar to Kuniko's eyes from Shangri-La. **

**In terms of their weapons: Gale's handgun is like the Sig Sauer 1911 and her sniper is in a similar shape to the Omolon sniper from Destiny. **

**For Jade's disc just imagine the Identity Disc from Tron but thinner and a bit bigger. Her shield is similar to Captain America's but solid black and without a pattern.**

**Next chapter will be Raven and Devon's fights, and after that I'll be going into some more character interaction. Again, thanks for taking the time to read and feel free to review or PM any questions or criticisms. **

**P.S. if anyone knows some sweet artists that could do some character art or cover art or something, I'd love it if you could put me in touch. Cheers :p**


	9. Combat Pt 2

**So this came out much, much later than I intended. had a bunch of tests and a group project for Uni that kept writing time to a minimum. That along with trying to get the fights just right took longer than I anticipated.**

**But in any case, enjoy!**

* * *

Devon watched as his teammate strode confidently down to the arena, followed closely by Blake. They made it to the stage and took their ready stances, Blake drawing out her katana from its sheath, and Raven spinning one end of her cord rapidly in her right hand while letting the other hang loose in her left.

"Yeah! Go Blakey! Show 'em who's boss!"

Devon turned to see Yang cheering on her partner, and her sister pumping her fists beside her. He looked back to the stage, noticing the confident smirk on Blake's features. His own teammate had a frustrated expression, along with... something else he couldn't quite place, her eyes glancing between her opponent and the stands.

"No... way..." Gale whispered beside him, but before he could ask her what she meant, Goodwitch announced the start of the match.

"You may begin!"

Immediately Blake rolled forwards onto one knee, folding her weapon back into its pistol form and taking a few shots at Raven. The black eyed girl quickly brought the end she was spinning, up in front of her, creating a shield to block the barrage. Giving up on the ranged assault, Blake rushed forward switching her weapon back into its katana form and drawing the sheath off of her back.

Before Blake could get too close, Raven started to lash out with her cord. She whipped the ends towards her opponent, spinning and dancing around on the spot, keeping up a flurry of attacks. At first Blake attempted to deflect the flailing attacks with her weapons, batting the ends aside as she continued to move closer, but the closer she got, the shorter the cord needed to be and the faster the attacks became.

Devon watched as strikes started connecting, coming too fast for Blake to block. After taking a few hits, she suddenly burst forward with a quick display of speed and for a moment there was two of her. One had moved inside his teammate's guard and one was taking all of the hits. After a moment the later vanished leaving a surprised Raven exposed and open for attack.

Blake didn't hesitate and launched into a flurry of strikes, swiping and slashing at her opponent, rapidly lowering her aura level. Managing to collect herself, Raven back flipped away from the onslaught and quickly reached into the pouches at her waist. She brought out a light blue dust crystal in each hand and quickly crushed them together. As they shattered they turned into a ball of water about the size of her head that she held between her hands.

Blake had started a charge once again, but before she could get close Raven launched the ball of water towards her, flicking her wrist to send the projectile. Blake either wasn't fast enough or didn't consider the incoming projectile a threat, most likely the later considering the moves she had pulled so far. She really should have given the attack more merit though as the ball hit her, splashing into her chest and sending her backwards. She recovered from the fall into a backwards roll and stood, analysing her opponent and the new threat.

With slightly renewed confidence Raven smirked and reached into her pouches again, but this time Blake didn't move, simply waiting with her weapons held ready in front of her. Raven smashed two new crystals together and pulled her hands apart, causing the newly formed water to split into a multitude of small balls that hung in the air around her. The arena seemed to be frozen for a moment, both opponents perfectly still and calculating.

In a flash his teammate flicked her wrist and one of the balls shot towards her opponent, only for her to bring her sharpened sheath up to block it. Raven then began to send shot after shot Blake's way, keeping the rhythm irregular to keep her guessing. Blake managed to either block, slash or dodge, with assistance from her clones, which he assumed was her semblance, every projectile.

By now both Gale and Yang were cheering their respective teammates on. Jade also looked like she wanted to join their leader in supporting her sister, but wasn't doing so. Probably due to her shyness, he guessed. It was so strange seeing her change from strong and confident, to her normal demeanour so quickly. Then again, Gale can go from cheeky to mature in a similar fashion. Maybe it's a girl thing?

After the assault had ended Blake returned the sheath to her back. She folded her katana back into its pistol form again and loosened the black ribbon on her arm. After a moment she had her pistol in her hand attached to the ribbon and poised ready to strike. She ran forward and threw the weapon at her opponent, who deftly avoided the blade, before she pulled at the ribbon, causing the pistol to fire.

The round hit his teammate in the back of the head, causing her to stumble a little, and the blade continued to whip about in the air around her. Consecutive rounds fired off, causing the weapon to move more erratically, occasionally swooping in for a slash. Raven spun her cord around herself trying to keep the bullets and blade from hitting her.

She gave up on defence and whipped one end of her cord towards Blake's ribbon, the two lines became tangled as they met in the air and Raven yanked hard. Blake had the ribbon wrapped around her forearm, so when Raven pulled it taught, she followed, staggering forward. The pistol had fallen limp on the ground and Raven began to pull her opponent closer, reeling in the tangled lines. Blake failed to fully regain her balance and continued to stumble towards her opponent, the gap between them shrinking quickly.

As Blake drew near, Raven swung the free end of her cord next to her a couple of times before whipping it downwards causing it to embed in the floor. As her opponent reached her, Raven sidestepped and pulled the anchored length of her weapon taught, catching Blake in the chest with it. She then began to flip and dance around her opponent, letting out lengths of her cord as she began to wrap her up in it.

At that moment Yang cheered particularly loudly, "C'mon girl! It ain't over yet!"

His teammate's attention slipped from her opponent to the fiery blonde for just a moment, apparently distracted by the outburst, but for Blake a moment was all she needed. Just before the restraints became too tight, she formed a clone and propelled herself up and out of the trap. Raven returned her attention a second too late and was unprepared for the lack of resistance when the clone dissipated as she tightened the wrap.

She fell over backwards and before she could properly regain her footing, her opponent was on her. Blake had undone the ribbon on her arm and was now free to attack Raven unhindered. She unleashed an onslaught of strikes and slashes with her two blades, driving Raven back and keeping her from retaliating. It didn't take long for his teammate's aura to fall into the red, and the buzzer sounded as she tripped over the end she had anchored in the ground earlier.

Blake stopped herself mid-swing and returned her weapons to her back. Raven slowly rose and dusted herself off, never lifting her eyes from the floor.

Goodwitch came forward to address them, "Miss Ferinhir's aura has fallen into the red. Blake Belladonna is the victor of the match. Excellent fight girls, you both showed a wide range of skills and used them to your advantage. However, Miss Ferinhir, you will find your time at Beacon and as a Huntress a lot more difficult if you are distracted so easily."

The black haired girl nodded and began to make her way back into the crowd, after untangling and collecting her weapon from the floor. She collapsed down onto her seat, folding her arms and huffing angrily. She sister rested her hand on the defeated girl's shoulder and gave her a small smile.

"What was that about humility?" Gale teased, receiving a glare from their black-eyed teammate.

"Shut up."

"Whoa, hey I was just trying to lighten the mood. You did well, but you seemed a little distracted. Want to tell us what's up?" the blonde asked.

Raven looked down at her lap for a few seconds before responding, "I'm just not used to having a crowd when I fight."

Devon saw a glint in his partner's eye as she asked her next question, "Are you sure that's all it is?"

He frowned at that. To him Raven gave a perfectly reasonable explanation. What else could it be?

"Yes, what else would it be?" Raven replied, giving Gale a challenging glare.

He watched as her eyes drifted over to team RWBY behind them who were congratulating their teammate on her win. Ruby was cheering happily along with her sister while Weiss congratulated her politely.

"Booyah! That's my girl!" Yang cheered, before pointing towards Devon's team, "It's the beginning of the end for you Team Grudge!" She waggled her eyebrows at him, "I hope I get paired against you big boy."

He raised an eyebrow at her before responding, "Unlikely."

"But the rest of our teams have been paired, so why not us?" she pointed out.

She was right. Despite the odds magnificently against them, somehow each of their team members had been paired against each other.

"Oh... I think I get it," both teams turned to GRDJ's leader, "They're ranking us."

"What? What do you mean?" Weiss asked.

"I mean they're ranking us against each other. Pitting one team against another to determine which has stronger members. I don't know why they'd do it, maybe for missions or maybe they plan on making our learning a competitive environment? I don't know, but that's what it looks like to me," she explained.

"Then why not have team fights instead of individuals?" Raven suggested.

"We've only just started here," Gale pointed out, "I imagine they want to get a feel for our individual skill levels, although I'm sure they got those during initiation. Besides, most of us haven't worked in teams before, and a week together is hardly long enough to become an effective cohesive unit. We'd probably do more damage to each other than the opposing team."

"Speak for yourself! Team Ruby would wipe the floor with you!" her fellow team leader challenged, raising a fist in the air.

"Pssh, as if," Gale returned with mock confidence.

"There's still at least ten other options," Devon pointed out, "There are still a few fights to go."

"Oh I'm sure if she doesn't fight you today she'll challenge you later on anyway. Am I right?" his partner turned to the fiery blonde.

Yang gave him a wink, "You betcha."

They returned their attention to the arena to see the legendary Pyrrha Nikos skilfully and elegantly taking down a tall blue haired boy who was wielding a large halberd. The match didn't take very long, Pyrrha disarming her opponent and forcing him to yield in less than three minutes.

He took a moment to examine the beauty, as he was sure every other guy and a few of the girls were doing too. Seeing the redhead and the halberd reminded Devon of their trip to Vale earlier that week, in particular, the weapon store he had cut himself in. His memory flicked to the weapon that had caused him so much damage with such little effort. His eyes widened in revelation as he stared down at the small white scar now marring the skin on his finger.

That's it! That weapon had to have something to do with his condition. It was after he had been cut by it that Pyrrha had attempted to unlock his aura, so it could have been the thing to cause it. It was certainly a strange enough item for something so strange to happen. But then, if it was so dangerous, why was it displayed out in the open? Surely it would have been locked up, at least in some sort of protective display case. If it was for sale, that was an even bigger problem. Someone out there could be stealing people's souls and auras with ease.

He needed to go back to there and buy the weapon before anyone else could. Assuming it hadn't been taken already.

He was snapped from his thoughts by his partner nudging him in the shoulder. He turned to her, seeing that mischievous glint in her eyes once again.

"You uh, thinking maybe trying things with Pyrrha again, eh?" she asked, eyebrows wiggling, "Yeah, I saw you staring. Don't worry I won't tell," she added with a wink.

Devon rolled his eyes, "No. I stand by what I said. She's great, don't get me wrong, but I can't."

She raised an eyebrow at him, a smirk making its way to her lips, "I'm wondering just how long you can keep that resolve. But anyway, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about. I want to talk about Yang."

"Enough Gale. I said that's not happening. With. Anyone," he shut her down, a stern expression on his face. He couldn't be any more blunt, but she still didn't seem to get the message.

"No no, that's not what I meant. She's not into guys anyway, she just likes to tease. I meant about fighting her," she clarified.

"Wait... Yang is-"

"Yup! But that's not important right now. What's important is that you're probably going to end up fighting her, and you need to have a plan," she interrupted.

"Right, okay. You know how she fights, right? What would you recommend?" he asked, leaning in to listen.

"Well, you know how I said to tire out the heavy hitters? Yeah that's not gonna work with her. She has stamina for days. Also her semblance means that hits and strikes will only make things harder for you, so stabs are really your only option," she explained.

"Great. What could possibly go wrong," Devon replied sarcastically.

"I'm not done yet," she continued, "You're gonna have to end it fast, either with one massive blow or as much damage as you can deal as quickly as you can. And _don't_ get hit, if you do..." she trailed off, leaving him to fill in the blank.

"If I do... what?" he questioned, a little annoyed by his partner's ambiguity.

She looked dead into his eyes. "She'll either break something, or you'll die," she deadpanned.

The was a lengthy silence between them after that.

"Well, shit."

"Devon Aster and Yang Xiao Long, please make your way to the stage."

Another moment of silence.

"Good luck!" Gale smiled up at him as he rose from his seat.

"Fuck you," he sighed.

"Rude."

He looked over at his opponent-to-be and was met with the most joyous and excited grin he had ever seen.

"Oh this is going to be fun," the fiery blonde said, cracking her knuckles and her smile changing to sadistic. She winked at him and started on her way down to the arena.

Devon sighed again and turned to his team, "Well. Here goes nothing."

* * *

Devon was taking long and steady breaths, trying to calm his nerves as best he could. He _really _didn't want to be here right now, but there was no way out of it unless he exposed his secret, possibly jeopardising his chances of training at Beacon.

Across from him in the arena his opponent was visibly excited for their match, bouncing lightly on her feet and rolling her shoulders, a massive grin plastered on her face. She had two yellow gauntlets on her forearms, so he suspected she was a close-combat fighter, but with all the crazy tech he had seen in his first week in the Hunter academy, he didn't want to jump to any conclusions.

He reached to his back, drawing out his twin blades, holding one in his right hand and the other in a reverse grip in his left. He gave them both a small flick for effect, the edge of his left sword glowing a solid orange and the one in his right a faint green. His opponent's grin widened and brought her arms up into a fighting stance. Devon lowered his own stance, holding his weapons out at the ready.

"You may begin!" Goodwitch announced, and Yang wasted no time in launching into an attack.

The blonde punched the air in front of her with each hand, the gauntlets she was wearing launching glowing projectiles at him, before lurching forward into a sprint. Devon only had a moment to register what had happened and dive rolled to the side to dodge the incoming attack. The projectiles connected with the wall behind where he was standing moments ago and exploded on impact.

Devon shivered. Gale wasn't joking. If he got hit, he was going to die.

His thoughts could go no further as his opponent met him, sending a powerful punch straight for his head. He ducked instinctively and twirled around her in a crouch, the momentum from her dash carrying her past him. She leapt as she met with the wall, and launched herself off of it and straight back at him with a push of her legs. He raised his sword to parry the kick she sent at his lowered form.

He rolled backwards away from her and up onto his feet. He readied himself for another onslaught as Yang closed in on him again. He switched his left blade to air dust and leaned to the side to avoid another punch aimed at his face. A loud bang sounded as the gauntlet next to his ear expelled a shotgun blast, shredding the air behind him and causing his ear to start ringing. Despite the disorienting noise, he continued to dodge, weave and roll out of the way of every strike she sent at him.

"Hold. Still. You. Silly. Boy," Yang grunted out between punches, unable to connect with her intended target.

She never relented however, so Devon changed tactics, turning his back to her as he began sprinting away. He heard the telltale grunts of his opponent throwing punches, and quickly dropped to his knees, sliding along the floor as the shots flew over his head. He returned to his feet and turned back to his assailant. She was waiting now, bouncing from foot to foot, arms up and eyes watching. He didn't think the fiery blonde had it in her to stay back and analyse a fight, he thought she was all run and gun.

"Gotta say, I think this is the first time a boy has run away from my advances," his opponent quipped, winking at him.

Taking the opportunity before Yang decided she wanted to assault him again, he began to send ranged dust swipes from his swords towards her, slowly at first before picking up into a rhythm. He was sending a fast volley of air slashes at her, twisting and turning, dancing on the spot as he released wave after wave of slicing air. Yang managed to sidestep or roll out of the way of the first few slashes, but as the intensity increased, she began to take a few hits. As each one collided though, Devon noticed that she wasn't visibly harmed by any of them, doing nothing but cause her hair to whip around angrily behind her. He kept up the pace, but watched as she crossed her arms in front of herself, bracing against the attacks. Her eyes had changed from violet to an angry red, and her hair started to glow, flickering like fire in the air.

Oh... wait. It actually was on fire.

As Yang began to sprint _in__to_ the onslaught of blows, Devon remembered what his partner had warned him about before the match. Realisation dawned on his face, albeit it was moving too fast for anyone to notice, as the blonde closed in on him once again.

'_...hits and strikes will only make it harder for you.._'

...Fuck. He didn't know what exactly his opponent's semblance was, but he guessed it had to do with her being seemingly able to brush off his attacks without being forced back by the blows. And the fact that her hair was _on fire_. If Gale's pointers were any indication, the blows he was hitting her with were only going to cause problems for him.

The blonde reached him and he stopped his attacks in favour of avoiding having his body annihilated by the glowing fists she was sending hurtling in from every direction, with a speed he thought unnatural to her build. It was all he could do to keep himself out of harm's way, using the air from his blades to propel himself backwards, to keep his face from becoming sauce, if a fist got too close.

She was quickly driving him back towards the arena wall, and Devon only had enough time to formulate one final plan of attack. When he was within a metre from the wall he swiftly turned and jumped, planting one foot on it and pushing off, launching himself over his opponent's head. He caught Yang's surprised eyes as she looked up at his flipping form, readying the blade in his left hand. As he flipped, he attempted to swing a kick into the side of her head. Yang was quick though, twisting her body and bringing her left forearm up to block the blow.

Devon had suspected she might be able to block this attack, and as such was not banking on its success, rather than the other one he was about to attempt. What he had not anticipated however, was his opponent using her blocking arm to snake around the leg she had just defended against, trapping it under her arm. Nor had he anticipated the thundering punch she directed to the exposed flesh on said leg with her free hand. The light armour Devon wore only covered the front and back of his legs, leaving the sides and knees exposed for ease of movement. This meant that when Yang's fist connected with the undefended limb, a sickening '_CRACK!_' sounded out, and a sharp pain shot up his leg.

Devon cried out in pain as he felt the bones break. As a last ditch reaction he jerked his arm forward, activating the fire dust in his left blade, stabbing at his opponent. His leg was released, and he collapsed in a heap on the stage. He looked down at the now unnaturally bent appendage and stifled his shouts of pain.

"Fffffffuck," he groaned through clenched teeth, and winced at the pain before calling out, "I yield! I yield!"

The buzzer sounded and the lights flashed back on. Devon was breathing raggedly due to the extreme pain shooting through his body, but after a moment he realised that his breaths were the only sound in the whole room. He looked to the teacher, who had an uncharacteristically surprised look on her face, and the crowd, all of whom were in a stunned silence, some with open mouths and others pointing. Devon realised they weren't looking at him and turned to what they were.

He winced again, but not from the pain this time. Well... not _his_ pain. When he turned to look at what the rest of the room was, his opponent, he was shocked at what he saw. Yang no longer had red eyes or flaming hair, and she was staring wide-eyed at her right arm. The limb was hanging limp at her side, but that was not what had everyone silent, he was fairly sure everyone was looking at the sword that was thoroughly impaled through her shoulder and protruding out the back of it.

He watched as a drop of blood ran down the blade and along the hilt, resting at the base of it for a moment, before dripping off onto the arena floor. A moment passed, and then Yang herself collapsed on the floor, dropping down onto her left shoulder, unconscious. The room erupted into noise. There were cries of shock and shouts of fear and anger, Devon thought he heard a scream too but it was all a bit hazy to him. The room slowly darkened and his head came to rest on the hard floor of the stage.

* * *

Devon opened his eyes groggily, blinking a few times as his eyes became adjusted to the blindingly white light.

"Hey big boy, how you doing?" Devon turned his head to look at who had spoken, coming face to face with his partner and her green eyes. He grunted and looked down at himself. He was in a bed, not his own, with white sheets covering him up to his shoulders. He moved his hand from under the covers to rub his eyes before taking in his surroundings, the white walls and line of beds letting him know he was in an infirmary.

He frowned. Why would he be in an infirmary?

His question was answered when he tried to sit up, a shooting pain from his leg reminding him of what he had been doing before waking up. Oh yeah... right.

He grimaced, but forced himself into a sitting position. His partner placed a hand on his shoulder, "Whoa, hey, you shouldn't be moving too much. You took a pretty hard hit."

"How long have I been out?" he asked.

"Only about half an hour," she replied.

"What happened?" he paused, "I mean, I know what _happened_, but what happened after I passed out?"

The blonde's expression became concerned and she pulled the chair next to his bed closer as she sat down. Hand still on his shoulder, she looked into his eyes for a moment before explaining.

"Well, after you both fell unconscious, Ruby dashed to her sister, and tried to wake her. Naturally Yang didn't respond and she feared the worst. Goodwitch stepped in, moving Ruby aside and removing your sword from her shoulder. I think Ruby nearly passed out herself from the sight of the blood." She paused for Devon's reaction, but when he gave none she frowned slightly and continued. "Goodwitch ordered two nearby staff to bring Yang here and dismissed the rest of Team RWBY to follow."

Devon looked around and realised he had completely missed the fact that the blonde brawler was currently resting in the next bed over from his. The rest of her team was sitting around her, and he noticed they were all now looking at him, all with different emotions on their faces.

The Schnee heiress was fixing him with an ice cold stare, analysing with scrutiny. Blake had her usual stoic and blank expression, and Devon would have thought she looked bored if it weren't for the questioning look in her eyes. And last of all, there was Ruby, who was giving him the angriest glare she could muster. Devon shifted uncomfortably under her gaze and watched as a fleeting hint of what he thought was fright, flashed behind the red girl's glare.

"Is she going to be alright?" he asked his partner, turning away from the team's looks.

"Yeah. Doc said she just passed out from the shock. Seeing a sword going in one side and poking out the other would do that to anyone I guess. Her aura has pretty much healed up the wound now," she answered.

He just nodded slowly and looked down at the sheets covering his lower half. "So what about me? What did Goodwitch do?" He was sure his condition would have been exposed now. He had taken a damaging hit and his aura had failed to protect him or heal it, and that would raise flags for anyone considering he was training to become a Huntsman. Goodwitch had surely figured everything out by now and would have interrogated his teammates. His Huntsman career was over. He was either going to be expelled, arrested or killed. And even if none of that happened, his clearly broken leg meant he wouldn't be able to walk properly, let alone fight, for quite a while. It was over.

Gale moved in closer, keeping her voice low, "After you passed out, I assume from the pain, or just the exhaustion, she attempted to rouse you. After she sent RWBY off she called us down to the arena. She took your weapons and gestured for another one of the medical staff to take you, and when they left with you on a stretcher, she dismissed the rest of the class. When everyone was gone she asked us to follow her as she had some questions. I asked if I could go with you, to be here when you woke up. She looked reluctant but let me do so as long as I didn't leave the infirmary, saying that she would talk to both you and me when you were awake."

He took the words in and mulled over the outcome. The fact that she took his weapons showed that she considered him a threat, and she was now or at least already had been interrogating the twins. He didn't know what the girls would say, whether they would spill his secret or whether they would do their best to keep it. There was only one way to find out .

"Look," she started, and he turned his attention to her again, "to be honest, I think she is more concerned about how you were able to attack _through_ someone's aura, rather than why you can't heal yourself. Just because you can't heal yourself doesn't make you a threat, and if she took your weapons, that's what she's probably worried about."

His partner's logic was valid. The fact that he couldn't defend himself would be no reason to consider him a threat. The fact that his attack seemed to ignore a defensive aura would be a more appropriate concern.

"And I wouldn't worry about the girls. Part of me thinks they have a problem with authority, especially considering their upbringing. I'm sure they are doing the best to avoid revealing your condition," she assured him, "Now you just need to explain how you did it."

He looked up at her, "Did what?"

She rolled her eyes and gestured subtly towards the other patient in the room.

"Oh... I uh... I don't know," he said quietly, eliciting a sigh from the girl next to him.

"As in 'I don't know' I don't know, or 'I won't tell you' I don't know? I thought we were past keeping secrets," she retorted, giving him a disapproving look.

He shook his head, "I have no more secrets. This I truly don't know, it's never happened before. Then again I've never really fought anyone with aura until today."

"Good," Gale said levelly, "But if you never trained against people, how did you learn to fight?"

Devon shifted his injured leg a little. Someone must have done some rudimentary healing at some point, because the limb didn't hurt as much as he remembered. "I have fought people before, they just hadn't activated their aura. But that's not really how I trained."

His partner frowned in confusion, "Then how did y-"

She stopped mid-sentence as the door to the infirmary opened, followed by the clacking of heels on the tiled floor and the stern expression of their combat instructor. They both froze as her gaze fixed on them, but before she reached them someone came to intercept her.

"Glynda, please. The patient has just woken, at least allow me to check him over before you give him another reason to be admitted here."

Goodwitch stared at the newcomer, a small amount of anger showing in her eyes. "Fine," she relented, striding over to stand next to his partner, her eyes never leaving his bedridden form.

"Thank you." The woman turned to face him now, and offered him a warm smile, "Hi there. I'm Dr Demina Virian, but feel free to call me Demi. Do you mind if I take a look at your leg?"

Devon examined the woman before him, and as he did, he was stunned. She was the epitome of beauty. She looked to be in her mid twenties, light blue hair tied up into twin pony tails with a single braid of turquoise hanging down next to her right ear. Her light blue bangs stopped above her pretty purple eyes, and her pale skin, not quite as pale as Blake's, seemed to glow in the white light of the infirmary. He noticed a short length of hair, similarly coloured to her eyes, tied back at the base of her skull and resting over her right shoulder.

As his eyes roamed her body he noticed she was almost as well endowed as Gale or Yang, her turquoise halter top cropped just below her chest, covering her modesty but leaving her slim midriff exposed. She also had on a short blue mini-skirt, stopping about halfway down her thighs and showing off long smooth legs that seemed to go on for days. While she was definitely not wearing typical medical professional attire, he was certainly not complaining.

Seriously! This fucking school!

When his gaze returned to her face, she was still smiling at him but she had a knowing and amused look in her eyes. Realising he had been caught ogling he quickly shook himself out of his daze and returned his attention to the world around him. What was it she was looking at him for? ...Oh yeah, his leg. He nodded quickly, not trusting his mouth to make a sensible noise.

"Thank you," she said sweetly, and lifted the sheet off of his leg.

He looked down at the now exposed limb and grimaced when he saw the purple signs of bruising. The woman tapped away at the scroll in her hands, probably taking notes, before giving his leg a few small pokes. He winced wherever her finger met his skin.

"Sorry," she apologised, "but it is necessary. You can trust me, I am a trained professional." He acknowledged her with a nod, and she turned to the professor next to him. "Dead aura?" she asked, drawing the stern woman's attention away from Devon.

"I believe so," she replied simply, before returning her gaze to the injured boy.

"Hmmm," Demina went back to tapping at her scroll for a moment before looking back at Devon. Upon noticing the thoroughly confused expression on his face she smiled brightly and spoke to him. "By that look I suppose you don't know what that is," she asked, getting a shake of the head in reply, "Well, we classify someone as having Dead Aura when it doesn't have the ability to heal the user, or is just very slow at it. It is rare but not unheard of. Considering your leg hadn't healed at all since you gained the injury, I made that assumption and took the liberty of healing it up a bit for you. Unfortunately, if I tried to fix it all up right away, your leg was likely to become even more damaged from the overflow of aura I would be subjecting it to."

"Thank you," Devon managed, receiving another sweet smile from the gorgeous woman.

"Not a problem," she assured him.

"Are you quite finished?" the stern woman by his bed interjected.

"Almost," the blue haired doctor placated her. After tapping at her scroll a few more times she looked back up at the professor, "Full recovery should only take about a week with daily sessions with me. Bed confinement for the weekend to monitor the patient's reaction to aura doses. Crutches for the rest of the week and would not recommend combat or leaving campus until patient is fully recovered."

Devon groaned at the information. The last thing he wanted was to be stuck in the infirmary all weekend, especially considering he needed to go to Vale to find that dagger. "Are you sure it can't be done any faster?" he pleaded.

The doctor shook her head politely, "I'm sorry, but for you to recover properly the process can't be rushed. If it were to go wrong you would likely end up losing the use of your leg for good, and as an aspiring Huntsman we can't have that now can we?"

Devon slumped back against the head of the bed in defeat, "Yeah, ok."

"Don't worry, I'll treat you with the best care I can ok?" she smiled sweetly, causing Devon to get a familiar feeling lower on his body. Maybe having private sessions with her every day wouldn't be so bad after all? He gave her a small smile and nodded. "Great! I'll leave you guys to it then." And with that she turned and walked over to Yang's bed, probably to check up on her. Devon didn't really care why, he was busy discovering that she looked just as great from behind as she did from the front.

"That woman. She causes more of the male students to be admitted here than combat training does," Goodwitch mutters before turning to the two teenagers next to her, "I have a few questions for the both of you, mostly you, Mr Aster, and you will answer with honesty or you will no longer find yourselves at Beacon. Am I clear?"

They both swallowed and nodded once.

"Good. Now Mr Aster, how is it that you are able to so easily attack a fellow student whilst negating their aura defences?" she questioned, giving him a firm and unrelenting stare.

He returned the stare with a blank one of his own, "I don't know Professor. My ability is as much news to me as it is to you," he answered honestly. He didn't mention the part where he suspected it had something to do with his lack of a soul, but he didn't think it would help if he brought that up.

She continued to stare firmly at him before turning her eyes to Gale, "Is this true?"

Gale nodded, "As far as I know. He mentioned he's never fought or sparred against anyone with aura before, so it would make sense that he never knew he could."

Goodwitch looked between them for a moment before sighing, "Very well. But Mr Aster, I must ask: Do you intend to injure or maim other students in this manner in the future?"

Devon looked shocked at that, but kept his reply as calm as he could, "No. Never. I wish only to hunt the Grimm, as I have no doubt Headmaster Ozpin has made you aware. I would never intentionally harm another student outside of regular sparring restrictions."

The blonde woman seemed to consider is answer for a moment before nodding, seemingly satisfied with it. "In any case, you will be confined to the school grounds and your weapons confiscated until the nature of your ability can be determined. Once it has been, you will be prohibited from using it in combat class," her expression softened a little before she spoke again, but only a little, "In the meantime, I suggest you attempt to apologise to Miss Xiao Long and her team. No doubt you have caused them quite a bit of distress this afternoon."

Devon looked over to the group surrounding the other bed and watched as they chatted with each other. He caught Weiss's eye, and she glanced from him to Goodwitch and back again before returning to her conversation with her partner.

Devon sighed, "Yeah. Will do."

At that Goodwitch left them, making her way out of the infirmary. Devon slumped back into the bed again and let out a long breath.

"Hey," his partner grabbed his attention, "I'm gonna go get some food. Want anything?" His stomach grumbled causing his partner to giggle, "I'll be back." With that she got up from her seat and started towards the door before stopping and turning to the little girl in red, "Hey Rubes, I'm going to get some food. Wanna come? You can grab something for your sis. When she wakes up she's gonna be hungry."

Ruby nodded and moved to follow the blonde as they made their way through the doors. After a silent minute Weiss spoke up, "I should probably make sure she doesn't overdose on cookies while she's there and destroy the whole cafeteria." She rose as well and exited the white room, leaving the two brunettes and an unconscious blonde.

Devon watched Blake with curiosity as she flipped the page of the book she was reading. Out of all of Team RWBY she was the only one to win a match against his team, counting his and Yang's match as a draw. She was quick, agile and precise, and he could see the calculating mind behind her glowing amber eyes.

She must have felt his eyes on her, because she paused her reading to look up at him. It may have just been the light, but he noticed the bow on top of her head twitch slightly as she addressed him, "Yes?"

Realising he had been caught staring, he quickly tried to come up with something to say. He needed to apologise to each of them at some point so he might as well start now. "I'm sorry about Yang. It wasn't my intention to hurt her," he offered hoping the sincerity made it into his voice.

She raised a delicate eyebrow at that, "Of course you were, you were sparring. The fact that she actually got a serious injury shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. We are training to be warriors, not entertainment fighters."

Devon frowned slightly at her. She didn't seem all too bothered that her partner was currently unconscious and had a blade embedded in her shoulder less than an hour ago. He took a gamble and asked her a question, "You didn't train at a combat school either did you?"

Her eyes narrowed at him a she seemed so size him up, "No... no I didn't. Where I grew up, you had to learn to fight to survive."

"That's a bit dark," he commented.

"The world is," she said, surprising him, "and it always has been. It's filled with danger, greed, hardship, and prejudice. But for those who live inside the protection of the kingdoms, they rarely ever see it, only through screens or stories. Most of the people training here have no idea what they signed up for."

Devon was both surprised and intrigued that he had found someone with such a similar view of the world to himself. "And what is that?" he asked, intrigued by the girl's opinion.

"We're fighting a losing battle, both against the Grimm and the crime of our cities. In order to make a difference, we are going to have to do some unsavoury things, going to have to get our hands dirty. They are all still so naive that they think they can win a war while keeping their hands clean," she looked down at her book again, "They'll either leave or be broken."

Devon looked her up and down again. He knew she was hiding something and he had a pretty good idea of what it was. "So I'm guessing you've experienced this danger, greed and hardship you spoke of, and what was the last one? Prejudice?..." He let the last word hang in the air, inviting her to react. He was not disappointed. She stiffened and he saw her bow twitch again, only confirming his theory. She must have realised she had given the game away because she began to give him a withering glare, her eyes glowing with a silent threat.

"I have," she seethed, "What does that matter?"

Devon shrugged off the glare and looked her dead in the eyes. "When are you going to tell them Blake?"

She visibly bristled at that, her bow twitching again. "How?"

"I know a faunus hiding in plain sight when I see one. My father did it too," he explained, earning a mixed look of shock and frustration from the black haired girl. She started to look uncomfortable, and he had a guess as to why that was. "Don't worry, I'm not going to tell anyone, I understand why you hide. As I said, my father did it too and I imagine for the same reasons."

She remained silent for a while, staring at him for what seemed like an eternity. "Thank you," she finally said quietly.

He nodded once slowly to acknowledge her. "I imagine you've been hiding for quite some time, and as such you don't have anyone you really trust. While I'm not saying that I am worthy of your trust, that is up to you to decide, I do know now what your team doesn't, so if you ever need to talk about... faunus... stuff, I'm happy to listen. I don't even know if there is anything like that and I'm probably not the best at offering advice, but I'm a great listener."

She eyed him curiously again, "Why would you do that?"

He shrugged, "Our teams seem to get along pretty well, and I made a promise to try and make a few friends. While I admit calling someone out on a secret is not the greatest way to make them, I hope we could consider each other such. In time of course, I know you're not likely to trust a human so easily. Besides, it's nice to know that someone else here has the same outlook on the world as I do. Lets me know I'm not crazy, or at least not alone in being crazy." He tried giving her a small smile.

She looked back down at her book for a moment before her eyes slid up to meet his gaze. "Maybe," she said simply, earning a satisfied nod from him as he returned to lying down in his bed. "And apology accepted. But things might not be so easy with her sister."

Devon sighed, "I've had too much drama for one week."

* * *

**So yeah anyway, as I said a long wait for this one but with a break coming up I should be able to pick up the pace. As always criticise and review. The only way I can improve if you let me know what I'm doing wrong :)**

**Raven's weapon is simply a long ass cord that she whips around and stuff, named Zeus. Her semblance was technically used during that fight but it is subtle so it didn't really show. I'll be explaining hers soon, probably along with Gale's.**

**I really like the design of Slade Wilson's swords form the Arrow TV series so that's basically how I imagined Devon's. His semblance? Well that clearly isn't a thing considering his condition.**

**And yes the two adult characters I have introduced will be playing major roles in the future, I want to set them up now and have a little bit of interaction as things go along.**

**Also let me know what you think of the name for Dead Aura. Got a better one? I'd love to hear it, especially as I came up with that one on the spot.**

**Cheers.**


	10. Knowledge

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Devon scrunched up his face, keeping is eyes closed.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

He swatted at the air above his face, trying to ward off the annoying interruption to his sleep.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

His eyes shot open and he grabbed the hand that had been incessantly tapping at his forehead. He turned to the face his attacker, and really shouldn't have been surprised to find his partner at the other end of the offending limb.

"Mooorniiiiing!" she sang, a cheeky grin gracing her features, "Or rather afternoon, it is currently twelve oh three."

He yawned as he sat up and stretched out his limbs, wincing slightly as he felt a numb pain in his leg. He glanced at the time, displayed on a projection on the wall, and confirmed that it was indeed afternoon. Aside from the ache in his leg, he felt great. He hadn't slept in like that for a long time, forcing himself up every day to train.

"Can I have my hand back now?" his partner asked.

"Do you promise not to poke me anymore?"

"Yes?"

He frowned at her, "Is that a question or an answer?"

"Both?"

Devon sighed and let go of her hand. He looked around the room and noticed the bed next to his was empty. He had apologised to the rest of Team RWBY when they had returned with food, and Yang herself when she woke up, probably from the smell of the meal. Weiss had accepted it graciously and politely, as he expected from someone of her upbringing, but it had taken assurance from Gale that he wasn't a mean person before Ruby had fully accepted.

The fiery blonde herself seemed unperturbed by the state he had put her in, rationalising that she had hospitalised him too. Devon knew she was okay when she went on to ask him if he 'impaled girls with his sword often?'. Naturally his partner joined in on the gag, leaving Ruby to blush and Weiss to berate her teammate for such a 'lewd and inappropriate comment'. Yang must have been dismissed from the infirmary this morning, leaving him the sole patient in the ward.

As he stretched something had felt a little off, and after taking a peek under the covers, he looked with confusion back at his teammate, "Am I in a hospital gown?"

"Uh... I guess," she offered.

"How did I get in a hospital gown?" he questioned, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Don't look at me, I didn't change you. As much as I'd love to see y-"

"If it wasn't you then who-" Devon interrupted her, before being interrupted himself.

"Good afternoon! Seems like somebody had a good night's sleep."

Both teenagers looked up to see Dr Virian smiling sweetly down at them. They shared a look, Devon's eyes going wide and Gale's grin getting even bigger.

Before he could get a word in, his leader asked what was on both of their minds, "Hey Doc, did you change my partner's clothes while he was sleeping?"

"Yes, I did," she replied, cheerily, "But don't worry, your belongings are safe and sound with us." The two partners shared a look again. Apparently she didn't understand what his partner was suggesting. Or she was just ignoring it.

Devon silently pleaded with his teammate not to continue, but his begging went unanswered. "So... what would you rate him?" Devon groaned and flopped back in his bed.

Demina raised a curious eyebrow towards the blonde, "I'm not sure what you mean."

"I mean on a scale of one to ten, howrrrfffphmmblr!" she started before Devon clamped a hand over his mischievous teammate's mouth, earning a pouty look from her, and an amused giggle from the young woman in front of them.

"My, you two are adorable," the blue haired woman commented. Devon dropped his hand from his leader's mouth face and looked down into his lap.

Gale noticed her partner's change in mood and replied simply to the doctor, with a small smile on her face, "No, we're not like that. Just teammates."

"What did you want to see me for Doctor?" the bedridden boy asked politely, quickly trying to change the subject.

"Please, call me Demina. I try to make this rather stale environment as casual and relaxing as possible. Besides I hardly dress professionally enough to warrant such a formal address," the woman waved off, "But in answer to your question, I am here for your daily healing session."

"Okay," he nodded, "What do I need to do?"

"You don't have to worry about a thing. I'm just going to take a look at your leg here to see how it's going, and then I'll heal it slowly for about half an hour," she explained.

"Is it all right if I stay?" Gale asked.

"That is up to the patient," the young woman declared, and Gale turned to him.

"You sure you wouldn't rather be doing something more exciting on a Saturday afternoon?" he offered. It wasn't exactly how he had planned to spend the day either, sitting there while a gorgeous woman attended to his injury. But to be honest, he could imagine worse things.

"You make a good point," she stood up from her chair, "I'm gonna go see if any of the others wanna go into Vale. Need anything?"

"Actually yes, I do," he replied, his thoughts flickering to his original weekend plans "There's a particular dagger I was wondering if you could pick up for me. Pyrrha should know which one it is, so ask her if you can convince her to go. There should be plenty of lien in my wallet so take as much as you need for it."

His partner frowned slightly at his odd request, before shrugging and nodding, "I'll bring the twins round after so we can all go over our skills. Might be able to plan out a training regimen and see what sweet combos we can whip up."

"Sounds good," he agreed.

"Well, I'll be off then. Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" she waved as she made her way out through the doors.

"That doesn't exactly rule out much," he mumbled as the doors swung closed.

The woman next to him let out a small giggle, "She seems like a lot of fun."

Devon shook his head lightly, "She'll be the death of me, if the Grimm don't take me first."

She giggled again, "Well why don't we get started. Mind if I take a look at your leg again?"

He sat up straight and nodded for her to continue. She pulled up a chair and sat down next to his injured leg and lifted the covers off of it. She tapped away at her scroll like before, until she was done with note taking and put it away.

"Okay, I'm going to start the healing now. I will need to touch your leg during this process, but let me know if I do anything that makes you uncomfortable, and I'll do my best to avoid it," she explained.

"Sure," he said, waited for her to start.

He watched as a purple aura started to flare up around her, slowly receding down into her hands. They glowed with the ethereal light as she brought them to hover over his leg, and slowly moved them back and forth above the damaged limb. Her movements were slow and methodical, and he felt the warm flow of her aura as is worked its way into his flesh.

After about five minutes of this she moved her hands down onto his leg and began to massage it. Her fingers worked lightly into the muscle and the numb ache he was feeling started to subside. Her hands were moving rather far up his thigh though and he had to concentrate really hard to distract himself from how close they were getting to his crotch.

"So is this your semblance?" he asked, both out of curiosity and a desperate attempt to distract himself from how _damn good_ her fingers felt.

"The healing? Well... yes I guess this is what counts as my semblance," she replied, keeping her eyes on her task.

"You guess?" he asked, slightly confused, "I'm sorry, I'm kind of new to aura and semblances. I hope you don't mind me asking."

"No, not at all," she smiled, still keeping her eyes on his leg, "I would be glad to help you understand it. We might as well do something useful with our time. My semblance and aura may be too difficult to understand if the concept is new to you so let's start with something more basic. Tell me what you do know about aura."

"Well, I know it's an extension of the soul, and that you can fight with it, use it to shield and heal you, and you can manipulate dust with it. That's about it," he answered, earning a small nod from the doctor.

"That is what most people know. I am a little surprised that as a Huntsman in training you don't know more, but you wouldn't be the first," she commented.

"Yeah, I..." he paused, choosing his next words carefully, "I was never really taught this stuff until I got here. I didn't train at a combat school."

"Ah, that is understandable," she nodded, "Well in that case, what would you like to know?"

He had to tread carefully with his questions now. If he asked one that made her start asking questions herself, he would be in trouble.

"Is it possible for someone to use dust without their aura? If they still had it locked for example?" he asked, hoping to give legitimate examples to quell any curiosity she might have for his reasoning.

"Yes. Many weapons and machine engines use dust as a power source. Someone who hasn't had their aura unlocked could still use a dust-round rifle or drive a dust powered car. They don't need aura to activate it as they are activated by reactions and catalysts," she answered, not really giving him any new information.

"Hmm, okay," he thought for a moment for his next question, "You said I had a 'Dead Aura'. That was based on its healing properties, right?" she gave a small nod of confirmation and he continued, "Is there anything like that for say, its defensive properties? Or could someone, for example, not have a semblance?"

She tilted her head from side to side slowly, considering the question, "Yes and no. Someone's aura could be weak defensively, but that is usually due to poor control or an illness of the body. Semblances are still quite a mystery, although, almost everyone who unlocks their aura discovers their semblance not long after. Sometimes it might take a long time, but they will normally discover it within a year or so of training."

She moved her magical hands off of his leg and returned to waving them over it again. He had to go for it now. It was a risky question, but he had to get the answer, otherwise everything would just continue to be guesswork and theories.

He breathed in slowly to calm his nerves. If the woman noticed, she didn't show it, continuing to work away at his leg.

"Is it possible for someone to be born without aura?"

He prepared himself for some sort of reaction; fear, curiosity or confusion at the very least, but he got nothing. She just moved her hands back to his skin and answered him normally. He thought he saw the slightest ghost of a smile on her lips before she spoke up, "I have never heard of it, no. All living creatures are born with aura, wether it has been unlocked or not. It's what differentiates us from the creatures of Grimm. And thankfully so. Our jobs would be a lot harder if the Grimm had access to it."

Fuck. Even she said it was impossible. A medical professional, no doubt extensively educated in aura and the body, had plainly said that he wasn't natural. What did this mean? Was he really some abomination, a broken person? He didn't know, and it seemed that nobody else did either.

What was he going to do now? What _could_ he do?

The knife! That had to be it. Somehow that blade had done this to him, removing or shutting down his aura. He needed to get it, he just hoped Gale was able to find it.

"You know, I'm a little surprised by your questions so far."

His inner turmoil was broken by the voice of the doctor, her eyes rising to meet his for the first time since she had started the therapy.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

That ghost of a smile appeared on her lips once again as she looked curiously into his eyes, "If you didn't know much about aura, I would have expected you to ask about what amazing things you could do with it. The power it could give you. Instead, you ask about what you could do _without_ it. It's just unusual is all."

Devon froze internally, but tried to keep up a calm facade on the exterior. This was it. He'd gone and done it. He'd asked the wrong questions and given the game away. He knew he shouldn't have risked it, and it had backfired on him. How could he explain that? She was right, if he didn't have aura, he should have wanted to know what he could do with it, not what it would be like without it.

If he wanted to get out of this one, he had to answer with a logical reasoning. And he had to do it quickly, the silence after her comment was dragging on, likely only making her more suspicious.

"I guess that's true," he started, "but I've already seen some amazing things in my one week here. Even the other first years have shown some amazing skills and things they can do with their aura and semblances. As someone who hasn't used it I guess I was just wondering if there was hope for me. I haven't discovered my semblance and my control of aura is crap, but everyone else here has been using it for years. I just wanted to know that I still have a chance to reach their level, that I haven't missed the opportunity. If what you say is true, then hopefully if I train hard enough for the next year, I can reach a level even remotely close to theirs." He knew it was a relatively weak excuse and just hoped that he sounded as convincing as he wanted to.

"I'm sure you will do great. And the more you learn to control it, the less you'll have to see of me," she assured him, giving him a sweet smile. Her response caught him off guard. That seemed to work to easily, but he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. If she accepted his excuse, he was in the clear. For now.

After her reply, one of her hands had moved slowly up his thigh, and he couldn't help but let out a small moan as the warm feeling alleviated some of the ache. Those hands just felt so damn good!

"Oh sorry," she quickly moved her other hand next to the first, "Is that a particularly bad spot? I'll pay more attention to it." She must have mistaken his moan of pleasure for a groan of pain, because she was now completely focused of massaging the muscles right next to his crotch.

"N-no," he managed, cursing himself for losing his cool, "I-it's just... your hands... a little close..."

"Oh. Ohhhh, I'm so sorry," she apologised, moving her hands away from the sensitive area, "I didn't realise I was making you so uncomfortable. I'll do my best to stay away from that area."

"N-no problem," he relaxed a little as she went back to waving her hands over a much less intimate part of his leg.

She continued on in silence for while, and Devon relaxed back into his bed as he let her work. The pain was all but gone now and he had to wonder how great it would be to have aura to heal you every time you got banged up. He did have one more question though.

"Hey doc-I mean... Demina? Can I ask you another question?"

She smiled at his use of her name and nodded, "Of course."

"You said, 'our job' when you were talking about the Grimm. Does that mean you're a Huntress too?" he asked.

"That I am," she replied sweetly, "Trained right here at Beacon. I graduated a little over a year ago."

"Ok. Then if you don't mind me asking; why aren't you out there fighting?"

"Oh that's simple," she answered easily, "We're in a time of peace. We don't need lots of Huntsmen and Huntresses out there fighting. Crime is still a small problem, but we have police for that. And besides, if I can be here helping those in training grow and learn even more, then that will make a better future for everyone."

Devon frowned at her answer, "But the Grimm are still out there. Even if there is peace between the kingdoms and between humans and faunus now, the war with the Grimm is perpetual. We can't rest while they're still out there."

"Perhaps you can change that when you become a fully fledged Huntsman. But for now, the world is stable, and I simply wish to help where I can."

He stared at the white ceiling as he processed her words. One day, he will make a change. He will end the Grimm and the world can finally be at peace. No one will have to live in fear of the monsters on the other side of the wall, and nothing like what happened to his home would happen again.

* * *

"I didn't peg you as the reading type."

Devon looked up from the pages of the tome he was engrossed in to see the black beauty of team RWBY standing across the table from where he was seated. She was holding a book open in her hand, and had a raised eyebrow on her face.

He nodded to the unoccupied seat next to her, inviting her to sit, "I will admit, it's not my first choice of weekend activity, but..." he lifted his leg carefully onto the table, the cast making a thud as it connected with the polished surface, "my options _are_ limited."

"I see." She took the seat and brought her book up to her face. She wasn't reading though, and after a few moments of her staring at his leg, he got the message, taking the limb off the table.

It was Sunday afternoon, and Devon had been released from the infirmary a few hours ago. Teams GRJ, RWBY and JNPR were all having a day out in Vale, and he didn't want to ruin their time by letting them know he was out already and having them cancel their plans to come and see him. Instead he decided to use the seemingly endless shelves of knowledge that the campus library had to offer to find anything he could about his condition.

Unfortunately Gale hadn't been able to find the weapon he was after, even with Pyrrha's help. Apparently the redhead wasn't paying attention to what cut him, and was more focused on him. His partner had teased him ruthlessly on that point but had offered to have another look when they went into the city today. He told her not to worry, and that he would have a look when he was finally allowed off of the campus again.

He had thought that all of team RWBY had gone in, but apparently the faunus had decided to stay in to enjoy what he supposed was her favourite past-time. So they two of them sat, in a comfortable silence within the mostly empty library, for almost an hour. Devon scouring through the pile of books beside him, and Blake casually flipping through her own text. Devon was honestly surprised when the girl across from him was the one to start up a conversation.

"That is some heavy reading," she observed, "Are you doing research? I don't recall being set any assignments yet."

He looked up from the lengthy chapter on the history of the discovery of aura, "Not for an assignment. I wanted to brush up on my knowledge of aura."

"Those are some rather advanced topics for 'brushing up'," she pointed out, examining the stack of books either side of him.

"Well, my level of understanding is pretty sub-par compared to everyone else here," he admitted, "Besides, I see it as a way to get into Goodwitch's good books if I can do well in her class. Well, I hope so anyway."

She eyed him curiously for a moment before nodding, "Fair enough."

"What about you?" he asked.

"I'm sorry?"

"What are you reading?" he clarified. Her book was a small one, black with no apparent title or picture on the front.

"Oh," she started, quickly glancing down at the pages in front of her, "Just my notes so far. I'm just reading them over again."

It was Devon's turn to raise an eyebrow this time, "Wouldn't you rather be spending the day out in the city than going over a week's worth of notes? We haven't covered much content yet, being the first week and all. Except Oobleck's class I guess..." That man could cover an astounding amount of content in a one hour lecture.

The girl across from him shifted uncomfortably in her seat, avoiding meeting his eyes and fiddling with the corner of a page of her book. After a moment she quietly spoke, "Actually, I'm really here because I wanted to ask you something. I couldn't find you in the infirmary and honestly this was the last place I thought you would be," After seeing his curious expression, she quickly added, "I didn't mean it like that, sorry. I do usually prefer to spend time in the library, though. But, if you wouldn't mind, I would like to take you up on your offer."

Devon gave a small smile in understanding and closed the book in front of him, "Sure. What did you want to ask?"

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to," she said tentatively.

He sighed, "I can't answer if you don't ask me a question Blake."

"Right, sorry." It was strange seeing her being quiet and unsure like this. She was normally quiet, yes, but in more of a mysterious and alluring way. "You said your father is a faunus," he nodded in confirmation but did not comment on her use of tense, there was no need to make her feel any more uncomfortable, "but you referred to yourself as a human. I assume then that your mother is human?"

He had to take a moment to compose himself. The subject of his family was still a sensitive one but he was here to help Blake, not share his own problems. "Yes," he answered simply.

"It is almost unheard of for a human to marry a faunus these days," she stated, "The divide between our races is improving, but it is still quite a gap. If you don't mind me asking... what are they like?"

Devon was silent for a moment, contemplating the right way to answer. He still didn't feel entirely comfortable talking about his parents' death with someone outside of his team, but he had made a promise to her.

"You want to know why they fell in love?" he asked. She nodded slowly in answer, her eyes watching him expectantly. "Well, that was simple really," he admitted, getting a questioning frown from the black haired girl, "Because they did."

That earned him an even deeper frown and a face of complete confusion. "What?" she asked, "What does that mean?"

"Exactly what it seems," he replied, "My parents didn't care about the divide between them. They saw each other as people, not as just humans or faunus. Yes, they acknowledged that part of each other, but they just accepted it as what made up the individual. My parents met at a coffee shop, just like any other couple could. My mum was a Huntress in training at the time and my dad worked at that little shop. Every weekend my mum would go into the city, before the sun rose, to just wander the streets in solitude. To be alone with her thoughts. And every time, just as the sun had begun to light up the streets, she would get a coffee at that little shop. The same order, at the same time, every Saturday. Being so early, and as the shop was only a small place, there was rarely anyone else there. Except for my dad. He would have her drink ready, freshly brewed just as she walks in, every time. They would engage in small talk, just simple stuff like the weather and any new shops that were popping up at the time. Eventually they got to know each other on a personal level, talking more and more, until eventually one morning, my mum asked him out on a date."

Blake, who was politely listening throughout his recount, looked genuinely shocked at that. "_She_ asked _him_ out?"

"Yup," he said, popping the 'p', "The next week, he joined her on her morning wander, and their relationship only grew from there. They got plenty of weird looks and even verbal abuse, though. There were a few times people attempted physical abuse, but they were swiftly dealt with by my mum." A small smile crept onto his face at the thought of his mum pelting a racist with the flat of her swords. "But they didn't care what others thought, and the day after she graduated they got married."

After he finished retelling the story, they sat in silence for a few minutes, Blake staring down at the table as he watched her. Eventually she looked up at him, and her eyes locked onto is. The amber orbs held a mix of emotions, but there was one he could plainly see. Confusion.

"I don't understand. How could she do that so easily? Was she not worried about what other people would think of her? Even plenty of faunus would have disapproved of a human-faunus relationship," she asked, more to herself than to him, but he answered anyway.

"That I don't know. You'd have to ask her."

"I-I..." Blake was lost for words. He wasn't surprised. The faunus had been discriminated against for so long, it must have seemed like no one could accept them, aside from another one of their own.

Blake stared down at her book, and the silence dragged on again.

Without looking up she asked him another question, "You said your father hides like I do, but you also said that they don't care what others thought of them. Why hide if you don't care?"

"I asked him about that too. He said it was just more convenient to. He always wore a beanie or a hat whenever he went out, and this whenever he went to one of the more racist sides of town," he explained, pulling up the facemask from where it rested around his neck to show her, "Unfortunately, being abused on your way to work can make you late. He never wore them when he was around mum though."

"So what, he was just using her for protection?" she shot out, an almost disgusted look on her face.

Devon could understand her reasoning. A faunus hides unless they have someone next to them to fight off the bullies. "I guess it would look that way to anyone else. But, if you spent even ten minutes with them, you would know that wasn't the case. Dad wasn't ashamed of his race, but after all of the abuse, he tried to hide it for her sake. He didn't want her to be on the receiving end of the hate. He wasn't a fighter, and after all the protecting she had done for him, he wanted to return the favour the only way he could. Mum wouldn't let him though, she said she loved him, ears, fangs and all, and she didn't want him to hide away for her sake." He let her process the story for a moment before moving on, "I don't know anything about you or your past Blake, and I mean no offense when I say this, but this might be hard for you to understand. My parents were in love. Despite all the cliques you see in books and movies, love really can be that powerful. When the only thing that matters in whole world, is the person by your side."

She stared directly at him now, eyes narrowed and questioning, "You said they '_were_' in love. Are they not anymore?"

Devon's eyes widened, realising that he had screwed up. He had gotten so carried away that he had forgotten to keep everything present tense. He had to think of how to word his way out of this.

"I haven't seen them in a long time," he started. It wasn't a lie, a year was a long time. "They were in love when I was last with them, but you never know... things change." He didn't want to suggest that his parents could have ever have broken up, but he had no other way of covering up his blunder.

She seemed to accept his explanation, nodding slowly in agreement, "Yes. I guess you're right."

A buzzing noise broke them out of the sombre mood. Devon checked his scroll to see a new message from his partner. "Well, everyone is back. And Gale wants to know why I'm not still in the infirmary. Guess, I'd better go." He stacked up the books he had been reading and moved them over to a trolley so the librarians could re-shelve them. "I hope I helped you in some way. It was... nice talking to you." He hesitated slightly before the end, considering he had to talk about his deceased family as if they were still with him.

"Yes, it was... nice," the girl replied, pausing as if to test the how the word sounded.

Before he made to leave, a question came to Devon's mind. He turned to the faunus across the table, "I don't suppose you know anyone who knows a lot about weapons and dust, do you?"

A smirk came to her face, a welcome change in his opinion to the melancholy expression she had been wearing though most of their conversation. "I think I know just the pair."

* * *

"So."

"What?"

"Wanna tell me what you were doing alone, with Blake, in the library?"

"Sure."

"Wait, really?"

"Yeah. I was reading."

"Oh I'm _sure_ that was all you were doing."

Devon had met up with the rest of his team outside of the library, and they were now making their way to their dorm. They were going slower than usual however, due to him needing the assistance of crutches to walk. But this gave his partner all the time in the world to tease him about how he had spent the afternoon.

"So how was your day girls?" he asked the twins, trying to change the subject.

"It was nice. Back home we didn't have a lot of freedom, so being able to go wherever we wanted, whenever we wanted was a nice feeling," Raven replied, a genuine smile on her face.

"I really liked when we saw that street performer. He was so funny and silly," Jade answered, sporting a cheerful smile of her own.

"_I_ really liked when we went bikini shopping," Gale offered, earning a blush from both of the twins, "And from what I could tell, so did the boys."

"Please don't break Jaune," Devon sighed, "He's the only guy I know here. As much as you guys are great, I won't survive if I'm drowned in oestrogen."

His partner just burst out laughing. "No promises," she managed after she brought herself back under control.

They arrived at the dorm room and Gale split from the group. "I'm gonna take a quick shower, I'll meet you guys for dinner when I'm done," she said, before waving and stepping into the room.

"You guys go ahead," Devon said to the other two, "I need to talk to her for a moment." The girls shared a look before Raven shrugged and nodded, and they started on their way to the cafeteria.

Devon entered the room to find his teammate's clothes strewn messily on her bed and the sound of the shower starting up. He wanted to talk to his partner about what Blake had proposed to him at the end of their talk. He would leave out the first part of course, keeping his promise to the faunus, but if he went through with her suggestion, he was likely going to have to reveal his condition to people outside of their team. He wanted to consult his partner before going any further.

He waited patiently for her to finish her shower, sitting on his bed and trying to ignore an itch that was under the cast. He heard the shower stop and waited for her to exit the bathroom. After fifteen minutes of waiting though, he decided to check on her. He walked over to the door and knocked on it, "Gale? You alright?"

He got no response, no sound coming from the other side of the door. His mind immediately jumped to the worst case scenario, thinking she might have slipped and injured herself, possibly knocking herself unconscious. He quickly opened the door, surprised to find it unlocked, and was met with the sight of his naked partner. She was staring at the mirror and touching her face, her finger lightly tracing around her eye.

The sound of him entering snapped her out or her apparent daze, and her head whipped towards him. Her eyes were wide with shock, and he noticed that one of them was the regular green, and the other the strange mixture of orange and purple he saw during her fight with Ruby. Around the oddly coloured eye he could see a strange marking. It looked like a faint black 'm' with one arch tracing around her eye socket, the next reaching down her cheek before finally leading into an arrowhead tail whose tip rested at her jawbone.

"G-G-GET OUT!" she screamed, her hands coming up to cover her face as she turned away from him.

Surprised by her outburst, and somewhat disabled by his injured limb, he fell over backwards, crashing onto his back on the floor. He let out a small groan of pain from hitting his head on the floor, and tried to right himself as he rubbed the sore spot on his skull. A jolting shot of pain travelled up his leg as he tried to stand sending him flailing back to the ground.

He felt hands under his shoulders and they helped him up from the floor. Gale moved him over to his bed and set him down. Still naked, she then walked to her own bed, retrieved her clothes and started dressing herself.

The pain had mostly subsided from his head by now so Devon decided to apologise to her. "I'm sorry for barging in on you, Gale. I knocked and you didn't respond so I thought you'd hurt yourself. I promise I wasn't trying to sneak a peek."

She had her back to him as she was changing, and she sighed as she turned to face him. She was only in her underwear but his eyes didn't go where they normally would. Instead they stayed locked on hers, staring at the strange change to her features.

"It's okay. I know you're a stand up guy," she said quietly, before dropping the shirt she had in her hand back onto the bed and moving to sit beside him. He continued to look into her eyes, his attention switching from her green one, to the mixed one, and to the marking before starting the cycle again.

"Your eye," he said simply, a bit disappointed in his inability to say anything more intelligent.

She instinctively turned her head and reached up to cover it, but he gently moved her hand aside and turned her face back to his by her chin. The strange mix of colours was mesmerising, and the odd tattoo-like marking completed the mysterious and exotic look. Clearly seeing that she was uncomfortable under his gaze, he tried to ease the tension.

"Tell me about it," he said gently, hoping conversation would alleviate the heavy mood. He was so used to seeing her confident and flaunting her body, that seeing her so embarrassed and nervous was starting to worry him. After he got no response he tried again, "Why have I never seen this before? I mean, I saw your eye during your fight, but I've never seen this marking. Is it a tattoo?"

After a few more quiet moments she answered quietly, "No... it's a birthmark. I hide it under makeup because it's hideous..."

"Really? It's not so bad. It's actually kind of pretty, in a mysterious, alluring kind of way," he added, trying his best to reassure her. She remained silent so he tried asking another question, "What about your eye? I don't think I've ever seen any that colour before."

She seemed a bit more confident this time. It seemed that she was comfortable talking about her eye, but not the marking. "It's part of my semblance."

"Cool," he said, "You know we never did have that meeting to discuss our abilities. What is your semblance?"

He noticed her mood slowly improving as she talked, "My semblance is Vision. Well, that's what I call it. I'm basically blind in my right eye you know. It only ever sees a blur of colour and light, nothing detailed enough to actually be useful. But whenever I hold Antares, it becomes even more clear than my normal eye. When I discovered my semblance, I realised it could do more than just see well. It could see _better_. With my gun in my hand I could actually zoom in with my eye, like a scope on a rifle, or a pair of binoculars, but only with that eye. As I trained and practised with it, I started finding other abilities too. I could not only see further and clearer, I could see people better. I mean, I could _read_ a person, see all the little movements they made, both on and off the battlefield. I could predict someone's movements with only the slightest of telegraphing from the body. I could also read people's body language in general, the way they react to things and other people. You could say my semblance gave me better perception of the world around me."

"So that's why you could follow Ruby so well," Devon concluded, "That's an amazing skill to have."

She nodded slowly, the faintest smile coming to her face, "It definitely has it's uses."

"What about that marking though. Is it a part of your semblance?" he asked, immediately regretting it as he saw her mood sour again.

"Not as far as I know. My parents told me I've had it since birth," she said, the sound of disgust plain in her voice.

"You shouldn't hide it, Gale. It's a part of you," he reasoned, thinking a similar thought for the black haired member of RWBY.

"It never bothered me when I was little," she explained, "I was too young to understand things like beauty and looks. But when I started to grow up and became interested in boys, it was a lot more difficult to ignore. In the end, it became easier just to hide it."

"I can understand wanting to hide, believe me, but..."

"I had to!" she hissed out, "I had to hide it, or be lonely. Which would you have chosen?"

"But you're not alone anymore. You have a team and you have friends. You no longer have to hide," he assured her, before another question came to his mind, "Does Yang know about it?"

He was surprised to see her shake her head, "You're the first person to see it in a long time."

They sat in silence for a while, Gale staring into her lap while he processed the new information. She had gone so long hiding under makeup and a confident attitude, that when she had been discovered she crumbled into quiet insecurity. But if that was the case, then why would she tell him? Someone she had only known for a week? He voiced his internal question, "Why did you tell me? You could have just covered it up again and continued on as if nothing had ever happened."

As soon as he asked the question he knew the answer, it was so simple and she confirmed it with her next sentence, "We made a promise."

He nodded slowly, "Yeah... we did. To be honest I was only expecting that to be a one way contract."

"Don't be silly," she chided, "We're partners, and we will be for a long time, I hope even after Beacon. You shared such a big secret with me even though you barely knew me. _Two_ big secrets. Compared to that my insecurities over my appearance seem so pointless."

"Don't say that," he interrupted, "Your problems are just as important. Just because someone makes a bigger deal out of theirs doesn't mean yours is anything less. It's important to you, and that's what matters."

She looked back up at him, a small smile on her lips and in her eyes. "Thanks, 'D'."

"I should be thanking you," he replied calmly, "You have done so much for me, without asking anything in return. I want you to know that while I do have my own problems, I don't want them to overshadow yours, or even the twins'. If something is wrong, come to me and we'll sort it out, yeah?"

She nodded, and then he did something to surprise her for a change. He reached out and pulled her into his arms, both ignoring her semi-naked state as she snuggled into the embrace. "Yeah, okay," she whispered.

They remained like that for a minute, before Devon started to feel uncomfortable in the prolonged hug. "Hey, the others are waiting for us. You get dressed and we'll go get some dinner."

She unwrapped herself from him and nodded, standing up and heading back over to her bed to continue dressing.

"So have you gone any further than 'accidental' second base, with the sexy doctor yet?"

Devon almost fell off of his bed in surprise at the unexpected question, "I knew I never should have told you about that. I should know better by now."

"Aww come on. You know you can't resist giving me all the juicy little details," Gale teased.

"I can certainly try," he rebutted, earning a giggle from his partner. She finished dressing and began towards the bathroom. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"Going to put makeu-"

"No," he commanded firmly, earning a shocked expression from the girl.

"What do you mean 'no'?"

"You need to show the others," he explained.

"No way. I could barely tell you! There's no way I could show it to them. It'll scare them off. We can't have a team with two people," she refused, a hurt look entering her eyes.

"Gale," he said firmly, "You told me and I'm still here." She looked like she was about to say something to fight back but he raised a hand to stop her. "I am probably the coldest and most unfriendly person out of all of us, and I'm still here. Do you honestly think that they'll run away just because of a few dark lines on your skin? I think we both know that's not going to happen."

She stayed silent after that.

"Tell them it's a tattoo if you don't feel comfortable admitting that it's a birthmark. In fact..." he stood up, awkwardly so with his injured leg, "I have a birthmark too. We can both show them together and claim that we got tattoos together. What do you say?"

She eyed him curiously, "Where's yours?" He smiled and turned around, facing away from her and taking off his shirt. He heard her gasp when he revealed his back. "I thought that was a tattoo! You're saying that's a birthmark as well?"

He looked at her over his shoulder and smiled as he nodded. Covering his upper back was a black marking, much larger than Gale's. It was a simple circle with a curved wave sitting atop it. She ran her finger gently over it, tracing the lines.

"Okay, let's do it." She turned and strode confidently towards the door. She stopped as she opened it and looked back at him a confident smirk on her face. "You coming or what?"

He raised an eyebrow at her and gestured towards the pair of crutches still lying on the floor, before pointing at his leg.

"Oh, right. Sorry," she apologised sheepishly as she quickly retrieved the crutches and handed them to him.

He chuckled as he followed her out of the room. He admired how confident his partner could be, even if it was only an act. She was an amazing woman.

* * *

**So another chapter down, and more problems arriving. Still no answers yet for Devon but with teamwork anything is possible right? Sure. ;p**

**Finally discuss Gale's semblance. Let me know what you think! Raven's will we explained either next chapter or the one after, depending on how I structure it.**

**But that's all for now, hopefully I can get one more chapter out before the end of semester, but with assignments and exams coming up, shit's getting busy.**

**And as always, comment, critique and review!**


	11. Thoughts

"You ready?"

Gale and Devon stood just outside the entrance to the cafeteria, Gale hyping herself up for what she was about to do. It had been a long time since she had let anyone see her completely exposed, and needless to say, she was nervous, the few looks she had gotten on their way not helping. While she didn't seem too concerned with the reactions of others, potential beaus aside, the reactions of her friends were paramount to her self-confidence.

She sighed, "Yeah, let's do this." Putting on a confident face she strode into the large room and made her way towards their regular table. Devon lagged a little behind due to his injury, but also not wanting to interrupt his partner's moment.

He saw Ruby wave them over, only for her to pause as her eyes went wide when Gale reached them. By the time he caught up to her the whole table was looking her way. He decided to help out his partner and break the awkward tension.

"Hey guys. What's up?" he asked, pretending not to know what was going on

"Gale's face!" Nora chirped up cheerily, only for Ren to quickly quieten her down.

Devon gave an uncharacteristic grin, earning a couple of looks of his own, "Yeah, we got tattoos. Not bad, huh?" He leaned on a crutch to clap a hand on his partner's shoulder, hoping to alleviate her stress and show his support. He quickly looked to the other half of his team, knowing that they knew that the two of them couldn't possibly have gotten tattoos in the short amount of time since splitting off with them outside their dorm.

Sure enough, Jade looked completely confused and her sister's eyes were narrowed with suspicion. He gave them a subtle wink, and after a moment they both smiled slightly, Raven even giving him a small nod.

"Really?" Yang asked, leaning over the table to get a better look at her best friend's face. After a few quiet seconds she finally spoke again, "That... is..." Gale cringed slightly, awaiting her reaction, "so cool!"

Gale froze in surprise at her friend's outburst. "R-really?" she asked tentatively, only causing her fellow blonde to grin wider.

"Of course! It's so rebellious and awesome, I love it! Maybe I should get one too..." she started, trailing off into a conversation with herself on what she should get and where.

"It's so pretty!" Ruby chimed in, smiling up at his partner, the others around the table all offering their own compliments for the look. Except for both Weiss and Blake who remained politely quiet.

"What about you, big boy?" Yang asked Devon, having come back from her ramblings, "Where's yours? Is it maybe somewhere a little bit... private?" The smirk on her face could not have been any more suggestive.

"Hardly," he replied, turning around so that his back was facing the group, "Gale, if you wouldn't mind?" Still a little in shock from her friends' reactions, it took Gale a moment to take her cue. She pulled the back of his shirt up to his shoulders to reveal the black mark covering the upper half of his skin.

After a moment of showing it off, he heard a wolf whistle somewhere from one of the tables behind him. "Yeah. What she said," Yang complimented. Gale let his shirt back down and they took their seats.

"You really think it looks good?" his partner curiously asked, still not able to believe their reactions so easily.

This time Raven offered up an answer, "It definitely adds an exotic element to your look. I'm sure you'll use that to your advantage."

"Yeah! See, it's already working on Jaune!" Yang piped up, all attention suddenly turning to the scraggly blonde. Surprised at getting caught staring, he fumbled and dropped his fork and sputtered weak excuses as his face turned red. The whole table laughed at his misfortune, aside from Pyrrha who looked slightly annoyed, but not enough to prevent a small giggle.

"Hey, partner?" Devon turned to the blonde, garnering her attention.

"Yes, partner?"

"One question."

"Yeah?"

"Why did we sit down?"

"What do you mean? Would you rather stand on your crutches while you ea... oh," she started before realisation dawned on her face, "Why _did_ we sit down?"

"No idea," he replied, standing up again, "Food?"

"Food," she confirmed, rising as well before they made their way to the dwindling queue for a meal.

As they waited in line Gale decided to speak her mind, "That went... surprisingly well."

He nodded, "What did you expect? This group of friends you've made doesn't seem the shallow type."

She raised an eyebrow at him, "_Our_ friends. Whether you like it or not, they're your friends too now 'D'."

He sighed, "Yeah, I guess you're right." He gave her a small smile, glad to see her mood had improved. She returned the gesture with her killer smile.

"Now! We gotta find that girl who whistled. Gotta set you two up..." she said, rubbing her hands together as she scanned the tables.

Maybe he spoke too soon.

* * *

"So. Why were you pretending those birthmarks were tattoos?" Raven asked, plopping down on her bed and looking across the room at the pair, waiting patiently for an answer. After eating and chatting in the cafeteria, Team GRDJ had returned to their dorm to prepare for the next week of school.

"Insecurities," Gale answered simply, sorting through her minimal notes for the week. Raven rolled her eyes and turned them expectantly to Devon.

"How did you know?" he asked. They never mentioned that they had birthmarks to the twins so how did Raven know? And why did Gale seem unsurprised by this.

"Oh yeah we never told you!" his partner proclaimed, "We may or may not have had that team meeting without you..." Devon raised an eyebrow. "Sorry?"

He sighed, "It's alright, but what does that have to do with this?"

"My semblance," Raven explained, "I can read minds."

Devon stared wide eyed at his teammate for a moment, blinked once and shook his head, "What?"

"It's pretty awesome," Gale offered, "Go ahead and explain it."

"Yes. Please do," Devon said with exasperation.

"It's not what you think, I can't just read your thoughts. It's a lot harder than that. It works more to do with someone's conscious acknowledgement of my semblance," Raven explained, only causing him to become more confused. "Okay think of it like this: Every time you have a thought you can think of it as being available for me to hear. If you were to talk to me but only using your thoughts and not verbally I could hear it, and if you let me I can talk back."

Devon just frowned and gave an unintelligible, "Huh?", earning a giggle from Jade.

"Probably easier if you show him," Gale suggested.

"Okay. Devon, I'm sure at some point you've had a conversation with yourself inside your head?" after receiving a slow nod she continued, "Then do exactly that but instead of talking back to yourself, listen out for me."

He frowned in confusion but nodded, _**'I am so fucking confused right now,'**_ he thought.

_**'I don't blame you, it isn't exactly an easy concept to grasp until you've experienced it.'**_

In his surprise Devon stumbled, lost hold of his crutches and collapsed on the floor. The other three in the room laughed openly at the shocked and now pained look on his face.

"That was priceless!" his partner laughed, only earning an annoyed grimace from him, "Oh come on, it was pretty funny."

After being helped up onto his bed he turned to his black eyed teammate, "What the fuck was that?"

_**'I told you, I can communicate through thought.'**_

"That's going to take a while to get used to," he admitted, rubbing his temples, "So how does it work? You can just read anyone's thoughts?"

Raven shook her head, "Not quite. If you want your thoughts to be heard by me, I can hear them, and if you want to hear mine, you can. Anything you don't want to 'think out loud' I will not be able to hear. Well not normally anyway."

_**'Huh. That could be extremely useful actually,'**_he thought.

_**'Yeah, I figured we could use it in the field to communicate silently.'**_

_**'Hang on. Gale is that you?'**_ he asked. During the conversation he had been having with Raven in his head, he hadn't realised that he had been hearing her thoughts as though they were being spoken with her voice. When Gale had 'spoken' it was just as distinguishable as hearing her voice. _**'Wait a minute, I thought we could only talk to you?'**_ he asked Raven.

_**'Technically yes, you are only talking to me, but I can relay what you say forward to anyone else I'm 'linked' with,'**_ she explained, _**'So effectively I can be a hub through which we can all communicate.'**_

"What about the rest of my thoughts though, can you hear all of those?" he asked, a little apprehensively.

"No, I can only hear what you want me to hear," she elaborated, "All you need is the intent for me to hear it and I will."

"But that's not all she can do," Gale interjected with a smirk on her face, "Come on, tell him the good part."

"Good part?" Devon frowned in confusion.

Raven sighed, "Yes, while I can hear anything you want me to clearly, I can also... force read anything you don't."

His eyes widened at that, "What do you mean?"

"Well..." she started, "At any point I can read someone's thoughts, but only a snippet of it. If they are unaware of my ability or just don't allow me to hear it, I can force read a tiny part of it. If they consciously intend for me not to hear it, then it's harder to read it and I get a smaller snippet."

"How... what?" he was completely confused now, and didn't she just say she couldn't read all of his thoughts? But now she apparently can.

"Try this," Raven offered, "Think of something, anything. An idea, an item or a person. Anything. But don't project it to me. I'll tell you what I can read from it. Oh, and try not to think about being confused. I know you are, I don't need to be a mind reader to know that," she finished with an amused smirk.

"Uh... okay." He closed his eyes and decided on something to think about. His train of thought immediately went to his own worries, realising that his teammates all had powerful and useful semblances while he still had no idea if he even had one. He was going to be dead weight if he couldn't figure out what was wrong with him and find some way to fix it.

"Semblance... worry... you." He opened his eyes and realised Raven had been talking to him. "You thought about a semblance or semblances, you were worried about something, and you were thinking about yourself. If I link those all together, I'm guessing you're worried I'm going to hear some things you don't want me to with my semblance? Either that, or you're worried that you don't have a semblance."

Everyone was looking at him expectantly, and he nodded slowly. "The second one," he acknowledged, "Although now that you bring it up..."

"Don't worry. I promise I won't force read you unless absolutely necessary," she assured him, "I wouldn't want someone running around in my head, so I won't run around in yours."

He nodded his thanks, "So if I forcibly think of blocking you from reading you won't be able to read me?"

"I can still read you, but I'll get less information. I could get a single emotion or a single word. The more I practice with it though, the more I can read. At first I couldn't even force read at all, but I'm getting better at it," she explained.

"Well if anything, I'm glad you have that semblance and not a certain blonde someone," he stated, all eyes turning to the only blonde in the room.

Gale covered her heart, feigning hurt, before relenting, "Yeah that's probably for the best."

"So that's why you went along with us in the cafeteria? Gale told you what we were doing?" he asked, finally understanding the situation.

"Exactly," Raven confirmed, before frowning slightly, "But that can't be a coincidence."

"What do you mean?" Gale asked.

The twins glanced at each other, _**'We have birthmarks too,'**_ they both said simultaneously. Said, thought, whatever. This was definitely going to take some getting used to.

The twins both turned to show their shoulders, Jade her right, and Raven her left. On the outside of their shoulders they both had a black marking, similar in colour to both his and Gale's. They both had what looked like a capital 'I' but the top and bottom lines slanted and curved slightly. The girls moved to stand back to back, and the markings lined up to make two vertical lines with a line on top curving up and one on the bottom curving down.

Devon and Gale shared a look and Gale gently touched her own marking. "What is going on here?" the blonde asked, despite knowing that likely none of them actually had an answer.

"Our parents told us that they made us special, but we left for Beacon before they got around to telling us why," Jade quietly spoke, sitting back down on her bed.

"Too many questions, not enough answers," Devon muttered, getting the rest of his team to look at him, "I came to Beacon to gain knowledge and strength, but ever since arriving all I've accomplished is realising how little I know and how weak I am. I'm starting to think this was a mistake."

"Don't say that," Gale said, "You may think you're weak and that you know nothing, but if there is a place to fix both of those, it's here. If you hadn't come to Beacon you would never have known that you had so much more to grow and could never reach your full potential. I'm glad we're all here. To experience things and grow together."

The rest of Team Grudge all sat in quiet contemplation as they absorbed their leader's words. They all looked at each other and couldn't help but smile.

_**'I like it when you go into mature mode,'**_ Raven complimented.

_**'Mmm, I have my moments,'**_ their leader stated proudly,_** 'So as 'D' pointed out, we have more questions than answers at this point. So! I suggest this plan of action: Devon and I will look into his aura condition while the two of you try to figure out what these markings mean. It's too coincidental for us to all have them **_**and**_** be on the same team. Sound good?'**_

They all nodded.

_**'Awesome. 'D' and I can keep researching like he was in the library until he's allowed off campus again, and the two of you can ask your parents what our markings mean,'**_ she stated gesturing towards the twins.

The twins shared another one of their looks before turning back to the other half of their team. _**'Well... that might be...'**_ Jade started.

_**'Difficult,'**_ Raven finished.

Gale frowned, _**'Why?'**_

_**'Well we... kinda maybe possibly sorta ran away from home,'**_ Jade offered,_** 'And haven't told anyone where we are.'**_

_**'...What?'**_

_**'We were sick of being sheltered, controlled and pampered. We wanted to go out into the real world and have our own experiences. We never had any friends, we weren't allowed to meet other people our age, and had to follow instructions and orders. All because we were 'special' and 'important'. It was suffocating, so one day we snuck out**__**,**__** with the help of one of our teachers**__**,**__** and he helped get us into Beacon,'**_ Raven explained.

_**'That sounds horrible,"**_ Gale said sympathetically, _**'Who was the teacher? Does he teach at Beacon?'**_. Devon wanted to know the answer to that as well. If the twins weren't able to talk to their parents, maybe they could ask this teacher what he knew instead. If he helped the twins, then he might be trustworthy enough for him to ask for help. Well it was a great idea in theory, until he heard the name.

_**'Yes, in fact you went to meet him during aura class. His name is Doctor Endel.'**_

Devon's eyes went wide and he slowly turned to look at his partner. She looked back at him with raised eyebrows and a small smile gracing her lips.

"Shit," Devon cursed, dropping his head into his hands.

_**'Is there a problem?'**_ Raven asked looking between them with confusion.

_**'Yeah, he confronted 'D' about his aura. He doesn't know about it entirely, but he was suspicious as to what was different about it compared to everyone else's,'**_ Gale explained.

_**'And you tried to seduce him,' **_Devon added.

"WHAT!?" both twins shouted.

"He was hot!" the blonde defended, "What was I supposed to do, not tap that?"

_**'Why are you the leader again?'**_ Raven asked sarcastically.

_**'Because I'm awesome and everyone knows it.'**_

Devon sighed.

_**'Can he be trusted?'**_ Gale asked after a moment, serious this time, _**'Could we trust him with Devon's secret?'**_

He turned to his partner with a firm stare. They had been over this, he had decided that he wasn't going to tell anyone outside of their team, with one possible exception, especially not a professor. With a shrinking number of avenues to investigate, the idea of confiding in a teacher was no longer blacklisted, especially if the twins trusted him. But Dr. Endel was the last one he would ever want to tell. The man had a vibe, and it didn't sit well with him.

_**'If we want help, he is the one we should go to. He hasn't ratted us out to our parents and he was nothing but nice when he was teaching us,'**_ Raven suggested, _**'He's extremely smart too, so if anyone knows something about the markings or your aura, it'll be him,'**_ she looked to Devon as she finished.

_**'What do you think 'D'?'**_ Gale asked, all eyes now turned to him, waiting for an answer.

_**'Jade,'**_ he looked up at the quiet girl, _**'Do you trust him?'**_

She gave a small nod, _**'Besides, Raven can always read him if you get suspicious.'**_

Devon turned to Raven, "Would you do that?"

The girl considered the proposal for a moment. "Yes," she answered reluctantly, "I hate to do it after all he has done for us, but if it will help you trust him, then yes."

Gale clapped her hands together, drawing all of their attention back to her. _**'Great! When we get a chance tomorrow we will go and see the hunk of a professor and ask him for some help.'**_ A mischievous grin crept onto her features, _**'And if he accepts... well, maybe I can reward him**__** for his effort**__**...'**_

"You will do no such thing!" Raven scolded.

"Policies," Devon simply said, before starting the difficult task of getting undressed with a broken leg.

"Stupid policies..." the blonde mumbled, before the rest of the team followed his lead and began preparing for bed.

* * *

Devon was nervous.

He was nervous and frustrated.

He was nervous, frustrated and confused.

And as far as he was concerned he had a right to be.

"You can't be serious."

"Indeed I am Mr. Aster. Until the extent of your ability has been evaluated, you will be required to continue your combat training under the tutelage of Dr. Endel. His vast knowledge and understanding of weaponry and aura will hopefully yield results quickly," Ozpin stated, taking another sip from his mug, "Your teammates may decide whether they wish to join you or to continue in Professor Goodwitch's class. Also, your weapons will be confiscated at the end of each session until you are deemed not to be a threat to the other students, if that becomes the case. You must understand, we are only taking precautions."

"Don't worry, I'm sure we can have a lot more fun than anything Glynda would let you do," the aforementioned professor smiled cheerily at him, before whispering conspiratorially, loud enough for everyone to hear, "She can be a bit... rulesy."

The platinum blonde woman next to the headmaster glared fiercely at the young professor, even as he smiled back and gave her a small wave.

_**'Oh we can have all kinds of fun...'**_

_**'I really hate having to relay your thoughts, you know.'**_

_**'I bring all of the fun.'**_

_**'Ugh.'**_

Devon spared a glance for his teammates behind him, rolling his eyes as his partner winked at him.

"In any case," the greyed man continued, "Your sessions will begin this Friday, by which point Dr. Virian has assured me you should be healed. Speaking of..."

As he spoke the blue haired woman entered the small conference room they were gathered in. "Ah, there you are. Peter told me I could find you here Devon. Headmaster," she greeted, nodding towards the man, "I must take Mr. Aster for his healing session now. I hope I am not interrupting."

"It's alright. We were finishing here anyway. I believe Dr. Endel wished to speak with him first, however," the headmaster acknowledged as he and his assistant made to leave the room.

After they had exited, Demina made her way over to the young man standing across from them and surprised them all when she leant in and gave him a kiss. "Hey babe," she said sweetly, "How's your day been?"

Schooling his own shock, Devon turned to see his leader's reaction. If the gaping hole that was her mouth was any indication, she was just as surprised by this turn of events as he was.

She looked to him with wide eyes, _**'Damn. Even I can't compete with that. No wonder he shot me down.'**_

Devon smirked, but when he saw the smirk on her face start to form he started to worry.

_**'Devon. Hey Devon. 'D'. Hey.'**_

_**'No.'**_

_**'We can totally-'**_

_**'No.'**_

_**'You didn't even hear what I was going to say.'**_

_**'You were going to suggest we try to seduce both of them so that you could sleep with Endel, and I could sleep with Virian.'**_

_**'Oh... Yeah!'**_

_**'Two problems. One, I'm not interested, and two, no.'**_

_**'You're no fun.'**_

_**'And you're too much.'**_

_**'But at least I'm still fun. Maybe I could get in on a threeway...'**_

_**'Stop it!'**_

The last thought was Raven's.

"Would you mind talking to Devon during his session. I really must get started soon," Demina asked the young professor, motioning towards the door.

"Of course not," he replied before turning and smiling at the four students across from them, "If you want to train with me as well, I suggest the three of you join us for this discussion."

At that he followed his apparent romantic partner as she made her way through the door, gesturing for them to follow. Reluctantly, Devon moved, walking through the door with his teammates close behind him.

_**'Well this works out great!'**_ Gale piped up as they followed the Huntsman and Huntress through the halls.

_**'It would seem so,'**_ Devon replied dryly. While the whole situation was not to his liking, if they were going to confide in Dr. Endel anyway, having him as a private teacher would mean that any... predicaments that might arise from his condition, would be contained to only those who knew about it.

Endel turned around as he walked, continuing on backwards, causing his partner to smile at his antics, "It's good to see you again girls. Are you enjoying yourselves at Beacon?"

"Yes sir, we are very happy here. Thank you for all you have done for us," Raven answered politely.

He waved her off, "Please, how many times do I have to say it. Jerad, just call me Jerad. But I am glad you are having a good time. I'm sorry I didn't come to see you earlier, I have been rather busy this past week. One of my second year teams needed my help. They had a tough mission."

"Do second years have missions already?" Gale asked, "School only started last week."

He nodded, "No one is usually given a mission within the first couple of weeks, regardless of year, but this team is quite... active, compared to others. Although, only one member actually went on the mission."

"Is that normal?" Raven inquired, "Solo missions, I mean."

"Not until the third year, under normal circumstances," he admitted, "First year is all team missions, some even multi-team or 'squad' based. In second year you will be given some two member ones, usually partnership based, and in third you will begin receiving solo missions."

"What about fourth year?" Devon asked, intrigued by the discussion.

"Ah," the professor turned to exchange a knowing look with the Huntress next to him. "I think we'll leave that one as a surprise..." he said cryptically, "Don't want to spoil everything for you."

Devon rolled his eyes as they continued to follow the pair towards the infirmary, the Huntsman turning the corner, still walking backwards. They entered, and Dr. Virian gestured towards one of the beds at the far end of the room, "Why don't we get you set up over there, it will give you some privacy to talk."

They all nodded and made their way over to the corner. With the help of his partner, Devon got himself comfortable on the bed while everyone else brought chairs up around it. Dr. Virian set herself up beside him and began the treatment. She ran her finger down the length of the cast, causing it to split open, before she peeled it off and placed it on the ground. Then she began her normal routine, flaring her aura and waving her hands over his leg.

Devon could practically feel the amusement rolling off of his partner, without even needing to look at her. So before she could make a comment he decided to address his new, for lack of a better term, babysitter. "So what is it you wanted to talk about, sir?"

The young man sighed, Devon guessed from his refusal still to address him by his first name, "I just wanted to let you know the plan for our training sessions, and... to discuss a more personal issue." He stared directly into Devon's eyes as he said the last statement, and Devon knew exactly what he was referring to. "In terms of this personal matter, I was hoping to run an idea by you, namely Dr. Demina here," he said, gesturing to the woman beside him, "She is an elite when it comes to matters of aura, her level of skill and understanding is the only one I know of above my own."

Devon looked unsurely between the two adults, "If so, then why do neither of you teach aura class?"

"An understandable question. You see, despite her skill Demina is still relatively fresh out of training. You must be a fully fledged Huntsman or Huntress for at least four years before you are permitted to teach. She does however, assist Goodwitch in her classes from time to time," he explained, "As for myself, I teach a technology and electronic infiltration class. It is an elective unit for those who wish to learn the art of hacking. Only available from second year onwards though, I'm afraid."

Devon turned to look at his team, _**'Raven, I need you to tell me what he's thinking while I talk with him. Can you do that?'**_

_**'Of course.'**_

_**'Good. Then here go-'**_

"I am aware of Miss Ferinhir's semblance, you know. I'm surprised that she has informed you already, and that you seem to be at ease using it," Endel interrupted their silent conversation, causing all four heads to snap in his direction. "I pride myself in my intelligence so please do not insult it. I have known since, I imagine, you first discovered it, back when I was training you. I understand why you kept it hidden from me though, it wouldn't do any good for people to know you were running around inside their heads now would it?"

Raven stared at the man in shock, _**'I never told him, I swear.'**_

"I'll cut the bullshit and get down to why I really wanted to talk to you," the man continued, "I know everything there is to know about all of you, more than you know about yourselves. I know about your strengths, your weaknesses," he looked at Jade, "your insecurities," then at Gale, "what you enjoy," then Raven, "what you're attracted to," and finally at Devon, "and what you keep hidden. You see I know about your condition, Mr. Aster, I know about the markings and I know answers to your questions. I know a lot of things, and what I don't, I find out."

He let them all sit in a stunned silence for a moment, absorbing his grand confession. Only Demina seemed unperturbed by the conversation, continuing to work away quietly at Devon's leg, but he could see the same ghost of a smile on her lips that he saw when he was asking her about aura two days ago.

"Even so, your aura and apparent ability to ignore others' when you attack, are both mysteries to me. As such, I requested that I be the one to train and investigate you," he admitted, before leaning back into a relaxed position in his seat and softening his eyes, "I am here to help. You are four marvellous and exceptional people, and I simply wish to impart onto you the knowledge I have, and to help you discover more about yourselves. And in answer to what you are probably thinking; yes, Demina knows all about this too. But that is as far as this will go, if that is what you wish."

Fucking what?! How?! Just... how?!

"How did you know?" Gale asked tentatively, clearly unsure what to expect for an answer.

"I may not be able to read minds like Miss Raven can, but I am more than competent with technology. Scrolls for example," the professor stated, "And as I was the one to develop your introduction packages, you can imagine it wouldn't be hard to install a bugging software to use the microphones and cameras, remotely."

_That_ earned a reaction.

"YOU'VE BEEN SPYING ON US!?" Raven and Gale shrieked simultaneously.

"Please keep your voices down, we wouldn't want anyone overhearing us," he requested with a calm voice, "I understand that may be cause for some concern, but I assure you I only used such methods on your male teammate, as he was the one I was concerned about. I already knew about the markings after watching you all during initiation." The three girls were giving him disbelieving looks, clearly not buying it. "If you don't believe me, I will make my memories of the past few days available to Raven if you wish."

"You can do that?" Gale asked, turning to their teammate.

"Yes, essentially he will be recalling his memories and allowing me to see what he his thinking about," Raven confirmed.

After a short moment of contemplation, their leader gave the man a firm nod and he turned to Raven, "Whenever you're ready."

Raven looked to her teammates unsurely, before turning back to the professor and closing her eyes. After a solid minute of silence, she opened her eyes again and looked at Gale, "He's telling the truth."

Gale couldn't help but notice the bright flush that had come to their teammate's cheeks, "Oh dear, what has you so flustered?"

"My apologies," the professor spoke up across from them, "There may have been some... intimate, moments between myself and Demina among those memories. I would have blocked them out but I assumed you wanted full disclosure."

Raven nodded, her face returning to its original colour.

Devon turned to the man, trying to ignore the fingers now making their way up his thigh, "How do we know you didn't make up those memories? It's your mind right? You could just show her what you wanted her to see."

The teacher sighed, "Yes, that is true, I could have. But, Raven not only gets the words you speak, but the emotions you are feeling too when she reads you. While she is not particularly proficient in her semblance, yet," he added, smiling towards the girl," she would be able to read whether I was attempting to deceive her with as much clarity." After receiving a disbelieving stare from him, he continued, "You are my student now Mr. Aster, and whether you like it or not, I am here to help you. I'm not the bad guy. What if I told you that your marking offered you a range of powerful new abilities, abilities that would be more than effective at decimating Grimm by the herd. All with training of course, training I can provide you. And that goes for all of you. I meant it when I said you were exceptional individuals. If you would allow me to work with you, together I'm sure we can make this world a better place to live in. Ultimately, I cannot force you to do what you don't want to, so I leave the choice up to you."

His three teammates looked between each other before nodding and looking to Devon. _**'We're in 'D', but only if you are,'**_ his partner stated, all eyes anxious for his response. He looked down into his lap, contemplating his options. He could refuse the offer, but now that seemed almost pointless. Endel already knew his secret, as underhanded as his methods may have been, and if he refused to offer up any more information, he had no doubt the professor would find a way to gain the information he wanted anyway. He had already proved himself extremely resourceful. That and he would be hampering his teammates as well. Even if he didn't want to learn anything from the man, he had no right to refuse them the skills he was offering. Even though they had chosen to follow his decision, he would forever feel guilty knowing he had prevented them from growing stronger.

The other option, if he was being completely honest, was beneficial in every way. Despite the fact that the professor had offered him his help and had shown kindness towards them all, Devon still didn't trust him entirely. He did spy on him after all, even if he was only doing it to make sure he wasn't a threat to the other students, it still proved he could and more importantly _would_ do it if he so had the desire. Aside from the issues of trust, the offer definitely seemed worth it. The answers he had been looking for, a teacher he could confide in and the promise of new powers. Plus, Doc-Demina was on his side too, and as far as he could tell the only person with a purer soul than her was Jade. Surely if she trusted him, he couldn't be all that bad.

He lifted his gaze from his lap and looked to his teammates, before turning to the young professor. "Yeah... alright."

The teacher gave him an appreciative smile before clapping his hands together, "Great! I look forward to seeing you all on Friday. Until then, study hard and learn as much as you can, but more importantly... have fun!" And with that he rose from his seat, pecked the blue haired woman on the cheek and made his way out of the room, waving as he left.

As soon as the doors closed behind him, Devon collapsed back on the bed. He had been through too much emotional turmoil today and it was exhausting. His actions earned a light giggle from the woman attending to his injury, who he had completely forgotten about during the discussion.

"Everything will be fine," she said sweetly, "You'll see."

Devon sighed, "I can only hope."

"He's a lot kinder at heart than he shows, you know," she started, "He's the most intelligent man I've ever met, that anyone has ever met, but he lets his quest for knowledge go a bit too far sometimes. That's why he can come off a bit strong or pushy at times. His heart's in the right place though, and I admire him so much." Devon could hear the affection in her voice.

"Plus... sploosh," his blonde partner added, a cheeky smile on her features.

The woman giggled again, "Yes, he is very physically attractive too."

"Out of curiosity, would the two of you be open to a threfthmmblfmgr!" Devon once again had to prevent Gale from asking an inappropriate question by clamping a hand firmly over her mouth. He was surprised to find Raven's hand covering his, apparently she had had the same idea.

"Too cute," the woman smiled sweetly, causing the both of them to quickly retract their hands and their leader to start laughing at their reactions.

"You guys are so much fun!"

* * *

**My apologies for such a large gap between chapters, I was not able to complete this before the end of my exams. Study, combined with Tomb Raider and Fallout 4 create quite the distractive combo. But hey, it's here now :) Now that I am on break for the next three months, updates will be happening more regularly. I'm hoping they will take no more than two weeks at most, preferably less than that.**

**So Raven's semblance is finally explained, and the hope of answers has raised its head. Could it be that easy? We'll see.**

**Also, I was pondering this a while back and figured I'd ask now: So far everything has been from Devon's perspective. Would you want to have it from the other team members' perspectives too? Let me know. Was just a thought.**

**And if anyone is interested in being a beta for this, PM me. No matter how many times I re-read them, I always managed to miss something.**

**And as always, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Leave a review or PM me if you have any ideas, constructive criticism or whatever. Peace.**


	12. Answers

Devon had just finished his final session with Demina, having finally restored his leg to fully functioning order, and was making his way back to his team's dorm room. It was Thursday, and all week he had been getting looks from his classmates. Some would eye him with curiosity, some cautiously as though he might attack them at any moment, and others were giving him what could only be considered death glares.

There were two reasons for this. One, he had maimed one of the most attractive girls at Beacon, and two, despite being severely injured, he never lost any aura during their fight.

Those who had tried to question him about it got nothing but a shrug and an annoyed grunt in reply. One guy who didn't take too kindly to being ignored had tripped him up, kicking him in his injured leg. Fortunately, his partner was on hand to swiftly put a round between the gentleman's legs. Naturally his aura protected him from any real damage, but the bruising got her point across.

So it was with a heavy sigh that he entered his dorm, before finally collapsing face first on his bed. He turned his head to the side to see Gale sitting cross-legged on her bed and staring intently at the bare wall on the other side of the room.

"Couch."

Devon raised an eyebrow, although his partner's attention was still focused firmly on the wall so she didn't notice. "What?"

"Couch," she repeated, "We need a couch."

He just rolled his eyes as he rolled himself over onto his back, "Sure."

"Couch..." she said again, seemingly lost in a world of her own.

"You're weird."

"Eeeeyup."

The two stayed in silence for a while. "Where are the twins?"

Gale shook her head a little, snapping out of her daze before flopping back onto her own bed, "Don't know. Said something about going to hang out with Yang and Ruby. I'm glad they're making friends."

"Okay."

Another bout of silence, and Devon decided a nap might be in order after a long day and started to close his eyes. However, before he could slip off into the beautiful embrace of unconsciousness, something interrupted.

"Wanna fool around?"

His eyes immediately snapped open and flicked towards the blonde haired girl. His mind was playing tricks right? Surely.

Apparently she took his expression of surprise as an expression of interest. Gale flicked her hair back as she leaned up on her elbows, "Come on, I'm bored! Let's do something exciting! And you're back in peak physical condition now." She looked towards him with her killer smile, and Devon had to look to the ceiling to avoid being sucked into her trance again.

"Give me one reason why that would be a good idea," he objected. Apparently she didn't take the hint, as she sauntered over to him.

She mounted him, knees either side of his hips as she looked down into his eyes. She slowly leaned down bringing her lips to his ear. "I promise it will feel really, really good," she whispered sultrily. The feeling of her warm breath on his ear caused him to shiver involuntarily.

Devon placed his hands on her shoulders and gently pushed her back. "I thought we moved past this after we became partners. At least that's why I assumed you stopped and instead tried to set me up with every girl and her sister."

"I just backed off a little while we got used to each other. Being with you for four years, I wanted to become friends first, so this wouldn't be a one time thing. After all, you said it yourself, you're not doing the emotional side of things," she countered, "We can just be two partners who help each other relieve a bit of stress when we need it." She flicked her hair around so that it draped over her shoulder, and gave him a smouldering look as she ran her hands over his chest. "And training to become a Huntress can be _very_ stressful."

He moved her hands away and sat up on his elbows as he looked her in the eye, "I'm flattered Gale, but I don't think you understand. I'm fine with making a few friends, and even after knowing you for less than a month I would consider you a best friend. But I am _not_ looking for intimacy, physical or otherwise. I cannot and will not commit to anything more than a friendship."

After a long moment of staring into each other's eyes she simply shrugged. She dismounted and made her way back to her own bed before smiling back at him sweetly, "The offer stands."

Devon sighed and collapsed back onto his bed, "Then it will for a very long time."

Gale flashed him a cheeky smile, "That's not forever."

He sighed once again and closed his eyes.

"Great, now I'm all revved up with nowhere to go. I'm going to find someone to play with."

Devon heard the room's door open and then click shut as he started to doze off.

_'Let's show them what we've got, yeah?'_

He rolled onto his side and whispered into his pillow, "I won't let it happen again. I promise."

* * *

"I still can't believe he made us wait all week without telling us anything," Raven complained, walking with the rest of Team GRDJ to one of the smaller combat rooms. It was Friday, combat day, and they were on their way to meet with Dr. Endel and Dr. Virian for their lesson. And hopefully, some answers.

"Demina wouldn't tell me anything either," Devon added, earning him an amused look from the blonde next to him.

"Oh, on a first name basis with the sexy doctor, are we?" she questioned with a sly smirk.

"Um... aren't we all?" Jade asked quietly, "She did tell us all that we could call her by her first name."

"Yes, but," Gale continued, "if I recall, Endel said the same thing. So why-oh-why do you still refuse to call him by his first name, when you seem so comfortable doing it with his lover."

"Phrasing," Raven, interrupted, causing Jade to blush, and Gale to laugh.

"You're a bad influence," Devon scolded his partner.

"Naaw, I think it's great! She's finally loosening up a little bit," she replied with a grin, before turning to Raven and giving her a wink.

They made it to the room they had been instructed to report to, and Gale stopped in front of the door and turned to address her team. "You guys ready? I know we've all been anxious to finally get some answers, especially you Devon," she said nodding to him, "But this our last chance to back out. One thing I want you all to take into account is that we might not like everything we hear, and some things we might wish we had never learned." After letting her words sink in she continued, "But that being said, it's up to you whether you would prefer to remain ignorant and uninformed, or informed and possibly regretful."

After another moment of silent contemplation Devon spoke up, "I have waited for so long, gone through so much already, that backing out now would make it all pointless. I have a large pile of regrets already, so one more won't make much of a difference." The blonde gave him a small smile and turned to the twins, waiting for their response.

Surprisingly it was Jade who answered for the two of them, "We have always been told only what we needed to know. It's time we started learning what we want to."

At that Gale's smile widened, "Alrighty then! Let's do this!"

Before she could even turn around, the door opened behind her and Dr. Endel popped his head out, "Are you guys going to stand out here all day, or are we going to have some fun?" he asked rather excitedly, startling Gale as a big smile broke out onto his face, "Come on let's get started!" He retracted his head and left the door open as their surprised leader stood frozen with wide eyes.

"Not expecting that?" Raven smirked as she strolled past the blonde and into the room, followed closely by her sister.

Devon stepped forward as Gale collected herself, "You ready to venture into the dark unknown, oh fearless leader?"

"Only if I've got my badass partner by my side," she smiled, and after receiving a nod from him, strode purposefully into the room.

Well. Here goes nothing.

The room was big, not as big as the main arena but big enough for a one on one spar. There was a stage, slightly smaller than the one in the main amphitheatre and a few benches at the back for spectators to sit on. Demina was currently sitting on one of them, one leg over the other as she tapped away at the scroll in her hands. She looked up and gave them a small wave and a smile before turning back to the device.

Endel was standing in the middle of the stage hands behind his back, eyes bright and excited behind his glasses. "Come on up guys. Let's get started."

"I thought you were giving us answers? Why are we sparring." Devon questioned, giving the professor a less than pleased look.

"Of course! But first I want to see what you can do. Yes, I've watched your initiation and last week's spars, but I want to see what you can really do. Fighting against a teacher, you will be forced to give it your all. That is what I want to see," the professor explained.

Devon raised an eyebrow, "What do you hope to learn?"

The young man just simply smiled at him and said, "Whatever I can." He walked over to one side of the stage. "Now," he flicked his wrists and they watched in awe as what appeared to be some sort of metal flowed over his body. Once everything stopped moving, he soon realised it was in fact a full body suit of armour. Metal plating covered his entire body, up to and including the grey helmet covering his head with two rather intimidating glowing red eyes. Looking at the hands, Devon recognised the shape of the gauntlet they had seen him tinkering with in his office. "Who's first?" the man finished, his voice sounding slightly synthesised.

"So this is your power armour, huh?" Gale commented as she examined the suit, "Impressive."

"Thank you." Devon could hear the man smiling behind the helmet.

Gale strode confidently up to the stage, "Well then, as team leader it is only fitting that I fight first."

"Very well. We will not be conducting a normal match. You will simply be throwing everything you have at me, and I will do my best to defend against it. Then, we will swap roles, I will attack, you will defend. And don't worry, you won't be graded." He gestured lightly towards their team leader, "Whenever you're ready."

"Everything we've got, right?" she asked. After receiving a nod from the teacher, she drew her weapon before moving it behind her back to create her full rifle. She levelled it at him, right eye behind the scope, before pulling the trigger. Like before there was hardly a sound aside from a low _thmbp_ as the bullet shot out towards Endel, hitting him right between his glowing red eyes. His head snapped back a little from the force, but he ultimately seemed unfazed, the bullet failing to penetrate the amour.

"Not bad," the professor commented idly, "But I know you've got better than that."

Gale frowned, putting her attachments back and taking aim with just her standard gun. She slowly started to walk towards her opponent as she started to release round after round at him, firing the empty magazine and reloading whenever she reached the end of her clip. She concentrated on the head but also took shots at the joints of the armour, around the elbows and knees.

Endel simply stood his ground, only moving to occasionally avoid one of Gale's fiery magazine rounds, as the bullets bounced harmlessly off of him. Once she got in close, he lowered his stance slightly and brought his hands up to prepare for close-quarters combat. The blonde flipped her grip on her weapon and started a barrage of air dust boosted punches. Every time she went in with a punch, she would flip her grip and unleash a few point blank rounds before cocking back her fist once again. Devon could faintly see her black aura as it covered her arm for each swing.

Dr. Endel, to his credit, avoided most of the punches, moving with a speed Devon thought impossible due to his armour. The metal plating protected against most of her rounds, only a couple managing to cause him any real trouble. It was only when she slammed the butt of her gun against the plating on his chest, causing a fiery explosion that knocked them both away from each other, that he held up his hand, "Alright, that's enough."

Endel still didn't seem to have taken any real damage, but looking at his team status tab on his scroll, Devon could see that his partner's aura had taken a significant drop from that last move.

"My turn." The professor wriggled the fingers on his right hand before sweeping it in an arc in front of him. Time seemed to slow down as Devon watched three small metal balls fly through the air towards his partner. Gale's eyes widened as she realised what was happening, reacting by loosing three shots, each one connecting with one of the metallic spheres. The resulting triple explosion shrouded the stage in smoke, covering both combatants and impairing their view. The spectators could only guess as to what was going on inside the smokescreen, all they could hear was the metallic _tink_ that sounded whenever one of Gale's bullets connected with Endel's armour and the occasional grunt of pain signalling the blonde had been struck.

After a few more seconds, a volley of loud gunshots sounded out as the smoke was dispersed, pushed back to the walls of the room. Evidently Gale had used air dust rounds to clear the cloud. Smart. The grey haze cleared revealing a clearly battered but standing blonde with the man in armour leaning back in a contemplative pose.

"Good, that was good. You should focus more on avoiding attacks than using your aura to block them. Perhaps you could use that air dust to help you," the man advised, the plating covering his face shifting and sliding back to reveal a smile, "We can work on that."

Gale let out an exhausted, "Cool," before staggering over to the benches, panting as she tried to regain her breath.

"Okay, who's next... Jade, how about you?" the man suggested, smiling brightly.

The timid girl nodded as she stood and made her way over to the arena. Devon watched silently as the girl's demeanour started to change as she readied her weapon. That fire of confidence in her eyes seeming to spread throughout her entire body as she coiled and flexed her muscles in anticipation.

"Whenever you're ready," the professor announced, taking a casual stance.

Jade immediately launched into action, sprinting directly at her opponent. Devon could see the faint glow of her aura around her legs as she moved, most likely using it to boost her speed. As she reached the armoured man he swung a fist out towards her, but before he connected she dropped low and slid between his legs, pushing up into the air once she was behind him and whipping her disc out in a vicious slash to the back of his neck. Endel stumbled forward from the hit but ultimately remained undamaged, protected by the metal covering his entire body.

The small girl landed a few feet away has the professor straightened out again, turning to face her. She didn't give him time to breathe though and was on him again, leaping right before they met and directing a shield bash right at his face as she sailed just over his head. He brought both arms up to brace against the blow, the force sending Jade into a spin as she continued over him. Just before she landed she flung her weapon towards him, using the momentum from her spin to add to its power.

The disc ricocheted off of her opponents body again leaving him unharmed but pushing him back slightly from the force. Her weapon bounced off the floor and back into her hand and she started to unleash a volley of ranged attacks. She would throw Tyndareus at Endel, only for him to bring up an armoured arm or leg to deflect the shot, sending the weapon flying back into her hand.

As her attacks continued she slowly moved towards him, each attack coming faster as the distance between them shortened. Once in close enough she began to flip around her opponent, sidestepping and somersaulting as she slashed away at him. After taking a few hits the professor intercepted one strike, gripping her weapon and throwing it across the stage.

With Jade still attached to it.

The petite girl flipped gracefully in the air and landed on the other side of the arena, sliding along the floor as she braced herself with one hand. Endel paused for a moment before nodding in approval and taking a step forward. All of a sudden he threw three small balls across the stage at her feet, before spinning around and throwing three more in the air above her.

Seeing the threat, Jade jumped and curled into a ball as her shield folded out between her and the balls on the floor. The balls detonated, the force sending Jade up higher but her shield absorbing the fire in the air around her. The explosion had sent her up closer to the three explosives above her and she had to twist in mid-air to block the second explosion. The force sent her back to the ground as her shield once again absorbed the explosion of dust, it now having a red glow along its rim.

Jade popped back up from the floor, switched Tyndareus back into disc form and slammed it to the ground in front of her. The result was a large wave of fire erupting upwards from the point of contact blocking the two combatants' view of each other for a moment. Using that moment, the small girl once again leapt into the air and launched her weapon through the wall at the last place she had seen her opponent.

Endel however was ready for it, leaning back so that the weapon glanced across his chest and with the same motion throwing another ball up along the same trajectory the disc had come from. Jade had little time to react as the explosive appeared through her fire screen and a moment later detonated. Being unable to dodge the attack in mid-air she took the explosion directly, the force rocketing her back down to the floor.

The wave of fire had subsided and the girl's weapon had been knocked off course by the explosion, landing on the other side of the arena. Dr. Endel walked over to her and knelt, offering her his hand. She took it, grimacing from what could only be sore limbs as he pulled her to her feet.

"Excellent," he complimented, his faceplate sliding back, "You're improving immensely. Keep practising with your aura and soon enough it will be second nature. Now go and let Demina look at that arm."

Jade's timid nature retuning, she nodded quickly and ran over to retrieve her weapon and made her way over to the blue haired woman. As she approached Devon could see the bruising on her right arm. She sat down on the bench next to the healer and returned the smile the woman gave as she held her arm out. Demina began to heal her arm in a similar fashion to how she had done with his leg, waving her hands over the limb as her hands glowed with her aura.

"Raven! How about you come and show me how much you've improved since our last spar?" Endel called, waving the other twin over. A small smile came to the brunette's lips and she nodded as she waltzed towards the arena.

"Laat zwarte..." Devon faintly heard her mumbling as she left the bench. He shrugged. He would ask her later what her pre-fight chant meant, but for now he had a more pressing concern.

He turned to his partner, "This is the same order as our fights last week. Do you think he planned that?"

She tilted her head to the side in contemplation, "I don't see how. I volunteered for the first one and I imagine he wants to save the best for last," she turned and gave him a wink at that, "After that it's literally a fifty/fifty chance that things end up in the same order."

"Hmm. Yeah I guess you're right," he conceded, turning his eyes back to the two combatants on stage. Somehow he didn't think anything Endel did was ever by accident. The man was too smart and calculating. Without any evidence that anything sinister was at play however, he let it go.

The professor's faceplate slid back down and his distorted voice rang out, "When you're ready."

Raven simply stood there, twirling the end of the cord in her right hand while the other hung loosely next to the hand currently on her left hip. She eyed her opponent for few silent seconds before quickly whipping the end she had been spinning out towards him. The man tilted his head to the side as the cord whipped past it, but a moment later the line rippled and the extended end whipped him in the side of the head as it travelled back to its owner.

Endel rolled his neck as if working out kinks in the muscles. "You girls certainly know how to start off strong."

Raven smirked, "You taught us well." As she finished her sentence she whipped one end out which wrapped around the armoured man's ankle and the other to wrap around his arm. She quickly twisted spiralling both lines around, forcing her opponent to cartwheel sideways with the force. While he was mid flip she yanked hard on both ends, wrenching him violently through the air towards her.

As he neared, she quickly reached into her pockets and drew out two water dust crystals. She quickly crushed them, and brought the newly-formed ball of liquid down hard onto the professor as she flipped over his form. Her opponent met the floor with a hard crash before the momentum continued his slide across the stage.

Raven was still holding the pool of liquid, moving it around slowly in the air before her, waiting quietly as the professor got back on his feet. Once he had done so, she whipped the water behind herself with a flourish before launching it towards him in a stream.

The man appeared unfazed as he simply held a hand up to the oncoming attack, a stream of fire shooting out of his wrist to meet the water between them. Steam began to form, rising up from the point of contact between the attacks until eventually, Raven's water ran out. The flames pushed forward, straight towards the girl and just in time she began to spin one length of her cord in front of her, forming a barrier that the flames couldn't seem to penetrate.

Without letting up the torrent of fire, Devon saw Endel ready an explosive in his free hand, rolling it between his fingers. Before he could warn his teammate the ball was already in the air, sailing in a loop over the flames and soon after, Raven's barrier. He was surprised however when the other end of Zeus came up and batted the small explosive away from her, just in time for it to explode on the safe side of her barrier.

This repeated four more times, each time the bomb doing little damage to the girl, before the stream of fire died down. Raven made a move to retaliate, but Endel simply held up both hands, signalling that the match was over. The girl nodded and visibly relaxed, returning her weapon to its place at her hips. Devon could see the sweat covering her body and drenching her tank top. It seemed her barrier didn't protect her from the sheer heat of the professor's attack.

Dr. Endel began to clap enthusiastically, destroying any illusion of a composed and enigmatic man, as his armour flowed back into nothingness. He walked over to the girl across the stage and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Absolutely exceptional, Raven. You have come so far over the last eight years, grown up so much from the little girl I was asked to train," he complimented, "This little meeting of ours couldn't have come at a more perfect time. There are so many things I want to show you, but please allow me to test your final teammate before we get to the big surprise." Raven smiled back at him, the most genuinely happy smile Devon had ever seen the girl give. Endel returned the smile and calmly held out his hand, "Now if you wouldn't mind, may I please see Zeus for a moment?"

Raven nodded slowly, and removed the weapon from her waist, looping the extensive length around her arm to bring it to a more manageable size. She offered it to him and he took it in his hands, bringing it up to examine the coiled metal.

"This weapon has served you well, however I am sorry to admit that I lied to you, Raven," he said slowly, and Devon could see the confusion on his teammate's face. "This is not Zeus, this is not the weapon you were meant for. It was a placeholder, a temporary tool I gave you until you were ready to handle the real thing," he explained, "And now, you are."

He motioned for her to stay while he walked over to a bench that had a duffel bag on it. He opened it, placing Raven's old weapon inside before lifting something else out. It appeared to be a black metal chain, about the same length as the cord he had just been holding. He closed the bag again, and carried the looped chain over to the waiting girl.

"This," he said, holding the links out to her, "is what you've been training for."

She looked between the professor and the weapon for a moment before taking it in her hands. It weighed her arms down slightly when the weight transferred to her.

"It's lighter than it looks," she commented, lifting it up and down. She looped it behind her, placing it where her old weapon used to sit, bringing the two ends to rest at her hips like before. She gripped the end with her right hand and gave it a few experimental swings. "It feels... better," she idly said, as she whipped the end outwards before twirling it back around and returning it to her hip. She looked up to the professor with that same smile on her face, "Thank you. For everything."

"My pleasure," he replied politely before gesturing towards Devon, "Now relax and take a rest while I test your teammate. You've earned it." Raven nodded and quickly jogged over to the rest of her team. She sat down next to her sister, who's arms were now free of any signs of damage.

"Mr. Aster. If you would be so kind as to grace me with your presence?" the man in the arena called out. Devon rolled his eyes and stood, "Oh, and your swords are in the bag too."

Turning on his heel he made his way over to the bag and opened it up. Sure enough, next to the previously stored metal cord were his sheathed blades. He pulled them out and strapped them to his back. He instantly felt a lot calmer, the familiar weight settling his nerves.

He casually walked up to the stage and took his place opposite the teacher. He folded his arms as he waited for the man to speak. Endel chuckled lightly as the metal of his armour flowed back over his body, "You don't have to look so bored. Personally, I think this is quite exciting." Devon relaxed his stance and drew his swords, flicking them as he lit them up with dust. "Now don't worry about hurting me, Demina is right here should anything happen. I'm giving you permission to go all out."

Devon raised an eyebrow, "You did say you knew about my condition right? One of those explosives will most likely kill me."

The professor just gave a smile as his faceplate slid down, "Then don't get hit." He took a ready stance and gestured towards him, "After you."

_**'You've got this. Hit him with everything you've got!'**_

Devon turned his gaze towards his partner who gave him a smile and a thumbs up. He nodded and turned back to face his opponent.

_**'If you damage his-'**_

_**'No! I refuse to relay that. You have issues, Gale!'**_

Devon sighed. He might as well get on with it.

He swiped forward with his right sword, sending a slash of air towards the professor. The man in metal took the hit, remaining unmoving as the attack did little more make him twitch from the force.

"Come on. I know you can do better than that," he taunted, still waiting patiently for Devon to attack.

Devon took a step forward, unleashing another slice of air, before pivoting around to bring his other blade down in another swipe. He began to walk closer as he unleashed slash after slash of dust-imbued attacks at the man, increasing the speed as he neared. Endel took every hit head on, them doing little to damage his armour, but occasionally forcing him back a step if the blow threw him off balance.

One he was only a few feet away Devon stopped his onslaught and brought the blade in his left hand up to chest height. Holding it in reverse grip and aiming the point towards the professor, he began to thrust repeatedly, small stabbing motions sending piercing shots of air across the arena.

Changing the angle and height slightly every time, he did his best to keep the strikes unpredictable. He saw small dents and scratches begin to appear on the armour, and started to press forward, increasing the speed of his attacks even more. Taking a chance, he directed the next few attacks directly at his opponent's head. It had the desired effect as the man's head snapped back a couple of times before he brought his hands up to defend against the attack.

Taking advantage of his opponent's temporarily impaired sight, Devon leapt forward using a swipe of air dust to propel himself the last couple of feet between them. He swung low activating the fire dust in his blade as he brought it across the amour covering the man's chest.

Realising what had happened, Endel quickly leapt backwards, putting some distance between the two of them. He looked down at where Devon had struck him. There was a large scratch running from the bottom of his right ribcage to the top of his left shoulder. The large diagonal slice had done little more to the armour than dent it slightly.

"Interesting..." the professor mused, looking down at the damage. A moment later the armour slid back off of his body leaving only the gauntlet on his right hand. "Perhaps a change in style..."

"Are we done yet?" Devon asked impatiently.

The teacher's eyes seemed to flash with curiosity as he looked at Devon over the top of his glasses. "You want answers so badly? I'll tell you what. Beat me without my armour and I'll tell you everything you want to know."

Devon frowned, "You already said you were going to give us answers."

The professor shrugged, "I changed my mind."

There was a moment of silence, a split second of peace before Devon lurched into action, lighting both of his blades with fire dust and swiping angrily at his opponent. He had had enough of the man's all-knowing arrogance. Acting all mysterious and cryptic while they waited for him to humour them with information. It was about time someone brought him down a notch.

He lashed out continuously, swing, after swing, after swing, and to his increasing frustration the professor blocked every single one. Using only his gauntlet, he deflected each attack, smacking them away with ease. He twisted, avoiding a jab, before launching a solid punch with his armoured fist directly into Devon's face.

He was sent sprawling backwards, tumbling over himself until he finally stopped in a heap a few metres back from where he had been standing moments before. He brought his aching body up to stand, wiping the blood from the fresh cut on his forehead out of his eyes.

The light chuckle coming from across the stage brought his attention back to his opponent. Endel opened his arms wide, taunting him, "Come on! Stop trying to hit me, and hit me!"

Devon was seeing red now, from the anger or the blood getting in his eyes he wasn't sure. All he knew was that the prey across from him needed to be put in the ground. Now.

_**'Don't listen to him 'D', he's just trying to rile you up,'**_ his partner tried to calm him down.

_**'He's doing a damn good job.'**_

At that he ran forwards again, barrelling towards the smug man smirking at him. His opponent simply sidestepped as Devon reached him, blade swinging down in an attempt to cleave the man, before he used the air dust he had switched to to stop his momentum. Before Endel had enough time to react to his sudden closeness, Devon swung down with his left sword, driving the superheated blade into the man's thigh.

The professor growled in pain as he dove backwards, wrenching the weapon from Devon's grip as he rolled onto his back. "Enough," he simply said, holding a hand up as Devon started to stalk towards him, sword raised. When he didn't stop, the gauntlet shot off of his hand and hit Devon hard in the head, and after a dizzying moment everything went black.

Again.

Combat day sucks.

* * *

_**'You know, a part of me thinks you like to get knocked out as an excuse to sleep.'**_

Devon opened his eyes, and as he did there were two things he noticed. One was the pretty face framed by blue haired smiling down at him, and the other was the throbbing pain in his head.

He groaned and blinked a few times to clear his blurry vision and soon realised that he was lying down, his head resting in the lap of the young doctor as her palms lay against the sides of his head.

"What happened?" he mumbled out, moving to sit only for the hands on his head to gently hold him in place.

"You took a hit to the head," Demina explained, "I'm just clearing up any last bits of damage, but I need you to keep still for just a bit longer, okay?"

"Oh, I don't think he minds." The face of his partner entered his vision as she grinned down at him.

He groaned again both from the ache and the girl's words. As he rested he could feel the headache slowly fading away as the doctor massaged the sides of his head with her fingertips. Not long after, he felt better than ever, his mind clear and calm.

"I don't think I've mentioned how amazing your semblance is," Devon praised her, slowly sitting up as she removed her hands.

"Thank you," she smiled back sweetly, "I believe Jerad would like to speak with you all now. If you are ready?"

He turned to see the professor patiently waiting on the bench behind them, Devon's own blades sitting sheathed next to him. Devon nodded in thanks to the woman before turning around to face the teacher. Demina moved to sit beside the man as Devon's teammates sat down next to him on the bench. After a solid minute of silence the professor finally spoke up.

"You have come to me with questions, and I will do what I can to answer them," he started, "However, everything that we discuss is to remain between those currently present. You may not disclose any of this information with anyone outside of the six of us, even the other teachers, and especially the headmaster. Is that clear?" Devon looked confusedly between his teammates, seeing equal looks of befuddlement on their faces. The fact that they were keeping this a secret from Ozpin caused him both relief and concern. He slowly turned back and gave a slight nod. "Very well. What would you like to know?"

_**'What do we want to know first?'**_ Gale asked.

_**'I think we should ask about Devon's condition,'**_ Raven suggested.

_**'There are also the markings,'**_ Devon offered.

_**'Yes, But I think yours is our most pressing concern at the moment,'**_ Raven pointed out.

_**'What's the matter 'D'?' **_his partner asked, _**'I thought you would jump at the opportunity.'**_

_**'I guess... I'm just afraid that I already know the answer...'**_ he admitted.

"You guys are awfully quiet," the professor across from them noted with a slight smirk on his face, "Not so inquisitive after all?"

_**'Alright then,'**_ he conceded. "Tell me everything you know about my aura."

The young man nodded in acknowledgement, "Of course, although I imagine I don't know much more than you do at this point. You do not have an aura, that much is clear. Even Demina was unable to find any trace of it during your medical sessions. However, I do believe that you still have a soul, but that it is shrouded or blocked by something making it difficult to detect."

_**'Told you,'**_ his partner chirped.

"Despite this, I believe that you still have... well, not quite a _semblance_ but essentially the same thing. I theorise that your ability to penetrate shields of aura is linked to your lack of it. You can attack your opponents as if they have no aura, however the drawback is that you yourself posses no aura. Alternatively, I believe that this penetrative ability activates when you are in a state of high rage, frustration or panic. This is supported by your fight with Miss Xiao-Long. You entered a state of panic when she broke your leg, thus allowing you to lash out and strike past her aura. My own tactic today was to provoke you into a state of anger. Which proved rather simple to do I might add, but we can work to control that." Devon directed a half-hearted glare at the professor, but the man just lightly chuckled and continued.

"These are a couple of theories, and for now, they are just that. Theories. As I said, I do not know anything for certain. But, with some training and a few more tests perhaps we can form a clearer understanding. Now as to how you are able to manipulate dust? That will be easier to explain when I answer your next big question." He gestured lightly towards them, "Is there anything else you would like to ask on that subject?"

Devon's team looked to him, and after a moment he asked the question that had been biting at his mind throughout the man's explanation. "Will I still be permitted to train at Beacon?"

The professor gave a hearty chuckle at that. Devon fought back the urge to wipe the amusement off of the man's face. "Yes. Believe it or not, you are not the first student to pass through this academy without access to their aura. Some make the conscious choice not to have it unlocked."

That earned a reaction.

"Why would they do that? Aura is so useful, and it's defensive capabilities are invaluable to Huntsmen and Huntresses," Raven questioned, just as surprised as the rest of them at this information.

"That is true, a person's aura is a wonderful power to wield, both able to protect the individual, and allow them access to many new ways to fight. But, like with all great power, there are drawbacks. Side effects." The man sighed lightly, "There is one aspect of aura that only a few know about, although it is quite logical when you take a moment to think about it. Aura is a physical manifestation of the soul, placing what is hidden within us on the outside. Flowing through our skin, bones, clothes and weapons. It protects us, and is an extension of ourselves. But the one thing that is fundamental, is that our aura _is_ us. It is our emotions, our will, our hope, our happiness and our love. But it is also our fear, despair, sadness and loneliness. Those with unlocked aura literally wear their emotion on their skin, radiating it to the world around them. And I'm sure you can discern what that means for the creatures of Grimm."

"….We're like beacons."

The words were almost too quiet to hear but as soon as they left Jade's mouth, realisation dawned upon the rest of the team.

"Precisely," Endel concurred, "We know the creatures of Grimm are attracted to negativity. So if someone was to wear these negative emotions on the surface, they would be more attractive to Grimm than say, a civilian with their aura still locked. So naturally some decide to fight without aura, if they train their bodies and minds well enough, they can do just as well as someone with aura. It is usually employed by those with stealth or speed in mind. While the other members of their team draw attention and fire from the front, they can run around dealing damage without so much as earning a single glance from one of the creatures."

"Why don't the schools tell us this?" the frustration and confusion was evident in Gale's voice, "If unlocking our aura was so dangerous they should have told us."

Despite his partner's confusion, Devon knew the answer to that question.

"Because they need people to fight." His words drew the attention of everyone in the room, pushing him to continue. "If they told everyone that they would be more attractive to Grimm, many people would think twice about becoming a Huntsman or Huntress."

"I could not have put it better myself," the professor praised, "Indeed, the number of prospective warriors would thin if they all thought they were going to be swarmed by Grimm the moment they stepped outside the walls of the city. The reality however is not so dramatic. Those with aura are less a beacon sticking out in the middle of the night, and more...like a large juicy steak next to a smaller, more modest one. I know which one I would prefer to eat. And besides, the sheer limitless power available to someone with access to their aura far eclipses this rather dismissible side effect."

Gale looked down to her hands as she pooled some of her aura into them, the faint black glow pulsing around them. "Someone still should have told us."

"Would you have chosen any differently?" Gale's eyes snapped up to the man who had asked the question.

"What?"

"I asked if you would have chosen differently had you known about the side effect. If the answer is 'yes' then you should quit now. Huntsmen and Huntresses are meant to be leaders. They are the strongest, the bravest, and the smartest. They are so powerful that they make regular soldiers look like house cats next to a lion. You have chosen to become a Huntress. Would it not make sense for you to take the fire away from those less capable of fighting and onto yourself?" The professor let the question hang in the air for a few moments before continuing, "If you are not prepared to put your life up for someone else, be it your closest friend or a random civilian, then you are not ready to be a Huntress."

"I..." Gale's voice caught as she tried to formulate a response. In the end, she just closed her mouth and looked down into her lap.

Endel sighed, "I do not mean to be so cruel, but I must be blunt. You have chosen this job. I just want to make sure you're ready for all that it entails before I begin training you. But!" he said loudly, clapping his hands together, "Back to the side effect of aura. In reality, it is also a boon. The enemy is drawn to the strong and away from the weak. Makes sense really."

Devon could agree with that. The Grimm were mindless beasts, so if given a more attractive prey they would go after it, whether it was the smart option or not. It was really an advantage that those who could fight were the most appealing prey.

He couldn't help but feel a little angry about it though. As someone who had no choice as to whether they could unlock their aura or not, it felt insulting that someone would reject such a wonderful gift. It hurt that they would take that power and cast it aside while he had to struggle to keep up with the rest. At least there was hope for him though. If other Huntsmen and Huntresses have made it through Beacon without aura, then so could he.

He looked to his partner, and he could see the inner turmoil she was experiencing clearly on her face.

_**'Are you going to be okay?'**_ he asked, placing a hand on her back as her eyes looked up to meet his.

After a moment the expression on her face calmed, and she gave him a small smile. _**'Yeah. Thanks 'D'.'**_

Gale turned to the professor and with a confident look in her eye asked their next question, "What do our markings mean, and what are the odds that we are all on a team together?"

The professor leaned back slightly before rubbing his hands together, "To answer that one, I should first ask you if you are familiar with old fairy tales. Bedtime stories and such."

"I like the story of the boy and his goat," Jade offered quietly.

"Wasn't there one about some knight who stabbed a bear?" Gale asked dumbly, earning a raised eyebrow from Raven, "What?"

"There's the legend of the Four Maidens and the Wizard," Raven recalled.

All eyes turned to Devon for his input and he looked down at his lap. "The Huntress who held the Wall," he almost whispered.

Endel nodded and sat up straighter, "Yes, all stories filled with heroism, bravery and kindness. All with varying levels of truth behind their plotlines. There is a lesser known tale, one of fourteen guardians, each gifted with the power of the stars and born to fight the darkness. A fairly fanciful tale, and cliché I know, but it is one of the few that are not merely stories."

"The Zodiac..." Jade quietly said.

"Very good, Jade. You remembered," the man smiled at her, "The tale says that to fight the darkness, the stars shone upon man and gave birth to guardians, each with unique abilities and a powerful connection to the land that they were born to protect. Using this power, they protected their fellow man and pushed back the creatures of Grimm, making it possible for the four kingdoms to be built. Many revered them as heroes, some even worshipped them as divine beings who had taken physical form. However, there were always those who were jealous of the power the Zodiac guardians wielded. In the wake of the newly constructed kingdoms, a cult had arisen with followers all over the world. They damned the guardians as demons, monsters worse than the Grimm, and coordinated the simultaneous assassination of all of them in one night. The ringleaders believed they had discovered a way to steal the powers for themselves, but ultimately the attempt failed, leaving the guardians dead and the world a much more dangerous place."

"That's not a very cheerful bedtime story," Gale observed, running a hand through her hair.

"The real ones usually aren't. Many have been modified for a happier ending. It wouldn't do to frighten the young aspiring children all the time, now would it?" the young man suggested.

Devon cut into the conversation, his voice showing the agitation he felt. They had come for answers, not storytelling, "So what does this story have to do with us?"

"I thought that was fairly obvious," the professor gestured towards them vaguely, "Those markings show that you possess the power of the Zodiac."

Silence.

"Uuuuuuuuuh..."

"What?"

The reactions by Gale and Raven summed up that of the whole team.

_**'This guy is a fucking nut job,'**_ Devon growled.

Endel sighed. "The four of you each possess, the powers of one of the guardians from the legend," he elaborated.

"What?" Raven repeated.

"Cool," Gale said nonchalantly.

"Bullshit," Devon, growled

Jade remained silent.

"Right now it may seem farfetched, even impossible, but in time you will see that I am telling you the truth." The professor turned around in his seat, "After all. We're in this together."

Looking closely, Devon could make out a black marking at the base of Endel's skull. Two jagged lines ran parallel to each other horizontally across his skin. The colour was similar to that of his team's own markings.

"You...you're one too?" Raven asked. Disbelief clear in her voice.

"Indeed," the professor confirmed, "Demina is as well, in fact."

At his words the blue haired beauty next to him rose and turned around. She reached down to the waistline of her pants and began to pull them down.

"If this is introduction, I can't wait to see what training is."

Devon heard Raven hit his partner, but couldn't keep his eyes of off the display himself. Only having moved her clothing down an inch or two the lines of what was undoubtedly another marking could be seen, right where one might get a tramp stamp.

"That is both unfortunate and extremely amusing," Gale commented, earning another slap from their black eyed teammate.

Her marking was similar to Gale's in that it was the shape of an 'm'. Hers differed however at the tail. Where Gale's ended in an arrowhead, Demina's had two curved lines that intersected near the tips.

After replacing her clothing and sitting back down, Demina spoke up for the first time in their conversation. "Everything Jerad is telling you is the truth. I have discovered my own powers as well as seen displays of his. It truly is a gift."

The two adults let the younger members absorb this information for a few silent moments before continuing, "So, do you have any questions? Or rather, which would you like answered first?" The smirk on the man's face could not have been any more smug.

_**'This is so awesome,'**_ Gale said excitedly.

_**'It is certainly... eye opening,' **_Raven offered.

_**'It's unbelievable,'**_ Devon added dryly.

_**'Well 'D', you wanted to get stronger. This. This is how you get stronger.'**_

_**'It would appear so...'**_

"The fact that the four of a us are on a team together can't be a coincidence," Devon directed his comment to the man across from them.

"You are quite right," he nodded, "The four of you are not together by chance. Just as the six of us are not having this conversation by pure random coincidence. Those with power are naturally drawn to power, especially others who posses it. Therefore it would stand to reason that four individuals like you would be drawn to each other. Just as you coming to Beacon, a school full of powerful and respected warriors, is also a reasonable outcome. Just as I was, just as Demina was, you were drawn to this place for its known and undiscovered potential to reveal the strongest of abilities within a person. And whether or not you'd like to admit it, you were also drawn to the two of us." He looked pointedly at Devon as he said this, earning a roll of the eyes in return, "The bond between the Zodiac is strong, and I believe this is not the first time many have congregated to the same geographical location."

"You're saying there are others?" Raven asked, and Devon admittedly was also curious. He had mentioned fourteen guardians. If the story was to be believed there were more of them out there somewhere.

"Are, and were. The powers you have are generational. You are not the first to wield them, and will not be the last," he added, seeing their confusion.

"So you're saying the powers are passed from our parents?" Gale asked.

"Yes, and no," the professor started, annoying Devon with his ambiguous answers once again, "While the powers are usually passed through bloodline, they usually skip many generations. But the powers are known to jump bloodlines completely, especially when two Zodiac have a child together."

"Do you know of anyone else currently with the powers?" Devon asked this time, beginning to become curious of the extent of the truth behind this legend.

"I have confirmed the existence of twelve including ourselves, and I am aware of the location of ten of those," he answered, "The last two either have not yet been born, or simply do not wish to make themselves known. Either way they will likely be in Vale if and when they do appear."

"You know where four more are?" Devon was surprised, although he really shouldn't have been. Just because the doctors were the first Zodiac he had met, didn't mean it was the same the other way around. Well aside from his team, but they weren't aware of it either.

Demina answered his question this time, "There is another team here, at Beacon. Upperclassmen to you."

"Can we meet them?" Devon looked to see it was Jade who had asked that question.

"Whether they chose to reveal themselves to you is completely up to them. Although there is nothing forbidding you to interact with them, no, if that is what you meant." The professor's response seemed to satisfy the green eyed girl as she nodded, and returned to her quiet nature. "Anything else?"

Gale was practically buzzing in excitement now. "Do we have cool legendary names? And what powers do we have?"

"I'll start with the names," Endel began, turning to the twins, "The two of you are Gemini, The Twins. Jade is the twin Castor, and Raven is Pollux." He turned to Gale next, "You are Scorpio, The Scorpion. And you," he finished, finally turning towards him, "are Taurus, The Bull."

_**'Scorpions are fucking cool. Hey Devon, get it? You're horny...'**_

_**'Shut up woman.'**_

"Cool. And who are the two of you and the other team?"

"I am Aquarius, The Water-Bearer."

_**'He carries water? Lame. He's more of a Sexiroth, The Fuckable. Ow! Raven!'**_

"Demina is Virgo, The Maiden."

_**'Now THAT one makes sense.'**_

"And the other team here at Beacon consists of Cancer, The Crab; Aries, The Ram; Libra, The Scales and Capricorn, The Sea Goat."

All that filled Devon's mind was his partner's laughter. He was thankful when Raven decided to cut it off. The poor girl would still have to listen to it though.

"You've talked about all these powers we supposedly have, but what exactly are they?" Raven inquired.

_**'Can goats even swim?! Oh no! Everybody fear the power of comparing weights!'**_

"Now this is the fun part," the professor began, a glint in his eye, "Each of you believe you have a semblance, Devon's condition aside, but what you actually have is called a 'singularity'. You also have the power to create and manipulate Dust using your body. No crystals needed." The professor smiled at the stunned silence that had fallen upon the team. "But I'm afraid that is all we have time for. Next week we can begin work on developing these powers and your understanding of what you really are."

"What?! You're not even going to show us?" Gale complained, the look of disappointment on her face seemed to amuse the professor.

"No. Whether I like it or not, I unfortunately have other teaching duties to attend to. Like weekly review meetings. I am truly sorry that I must leave you in the dark for another week, but I'm sure you have plenty to think about in the meantime." The teacher rose from his seat, and picked up Devon's weapons as he made his way to the duffel bag and replaced them inside of it. Demina followed him as he made to leave the room, only for him to pause and turn back to them, "One last thing. Please remember not to mention anything that we discuss outside of these classes. This information is dangerous if slipped to those who would do us harm. There will always be those who are jealous of the power he wield." The man's eyes seemed to darken as his tone became serious, "If you do, I'm afraid I cannot protect you from what may happen."

Devon and his team looked nervously between each other. Just what was he implying?

The man's face returned to its cheerful visage as he smiled at them, "On that note, enjoy your weekend!" And then he was gone, stepping through the door as the blue haired woman followed him, sparing a wave and a smile as she too exited the room.

The doors clicked shut and silence reigned as the team of students remained unmoving.

_**'Well that was... a lot to process,'**_ Raven commented, massaging her face with her fingertips.

Devon's partner rose from her seat and made for the doors. _**'I need a drink. Or four.'**_

"Stop." Devon looked up at his partner as she turned to face him, "Were you not listening? We know sensitive information now, possibly life threatening if that man's suggestion was anything to go by, and the first thing you want to do is drink? That's completely irresponsible. If you, in your drunken stupor, blab the wrong thing to the wrong person, you could be putting all of us in danger."

"Then by all means, come along and keep me in check," Gale said indifferently, "I'm going to see if Yang and Pyrrha want to go out tonight." And with that she passed through the doors, leaving the final three members of Team Grudge alone in the empty room.

"We could all use a night to relax and de-stress," Raven offered, "We've had a lot shoved on our plate today and we have a whole week to wrap our minds around it." She stood up and looked at her two remaining teammates. "You coming?"

Jade nodded and rose as well. Devon turned a questioning gaze on the black eyed girl, "I didn't take you as much of a clubber. I thought you of all people would want to stay in and work this out."

The girl gave a small huff and looked him in the eye, "Even I know how to have a good time, when I feel like it." She then strode purposefully for the exit.

Devon turned to Jade, "Did I upset her?"

"No," she replied simply, gesturing for him to follow her as she too made her way to the door, "She just isn't used to people yet."

Devon followed her out of the room and they walked side by side down the many hallways of the school. "You seem fine talking to us, even if you are a bit quiet sometimes," he observed, getting the girl to nod.

"We both grew up very sheltered, but whenever someone talked to us, Raven would always take up the conversation, like she was trying to protect me," she explained, "She has always been a little... brusque and I guess that is due to the fact that she's always had that idea in her head. That she's trying to direct attention off of me and onto herself. So no, I don't say much, but I'm fine with talking with people I trust."

"I'm glad I'm one of those people," he replied, returning the small smile she gave him, "You should talk more often Jade. You're very smart."

"Mmm," she acknowledged, "I'm trying to. But after today, after the things we learned. I'm worried about what I could accidentally let slip."

Devon gave a small chuckle as response, "I don't think you're the one we have to worry about. Speaking of which, we should probably make sure my partner hasn't done anything stupid already." He gestured down the hallway, "Race you back to the dorm? My legs have been a little stiff today and I want to loosen them up."

The green eyed girl smiled and nodded, getting in to a ready stance. Devon did the same and looked to her as he started the countdown, "On 'go' okay?" He received a nod of confirmation, "Alright. Ready," he started to see the corner of his teammate's lips start to curl up into a smile, "set," the competitive fire started to seep into her eyes as she turned to face down the hall, "go!"

It was at that moment that Devon had realised his mistake. As he watched the girl's aura begin to coat her legs she gave one last comment. With an uncharacteristically smug smile on her face she spoke.

"You messed up."

And with that she was gone. In the time it took him to reach the door of the next classroom ten metres in front of him, the girl was already at the intersection. Two hundred metres ahead of him.

He watched as she waved back at him before rounding the corner.

Fuck you aura.

* * *

**So yeah. It seems I am most productive in writing when I'm **_**at**_** uni. Anyway, a few things to address first. Believe it or not, I was halfway through this chapter when Vol 3 Episode 6 was released. As you can see, the idea of the Four Maidens is VERY similar to mine of the Zodiac. I promise I had this whole idea planned way back before I started writing this, so I was not just stealing RT's idea. Although in a story with magic rocks and superpowers it really shouldn't have been a surprise that something like this would come up at some point. At first I was going to scrap the idea altogether and come up with some other explanation for their abilities and such, but then I thought 'fuck it'. I'm not going to rewrite and plan a whole new plotline and power rules just because the canon has something similar. If anything it makes it all less fantastical. What with the Maidens and Ruby's Silver Warrior voodoo magic, what's one more set of legendary characters. I'm sure many more will show themselves in the show at a later date anyway, might as well stick with my initial plan.**

**So! With that out of the way, onto the characters. Yes, Endel's weapon is basically an Iron Man suit. However, in design it is more like the Crysis suit. More form-fitting and organic looking. For a more extensive explanation as to how it all actually works, well... you'll find out along with the rest of GRDJ :P**

**And there it is, for those who didn't catch it (or just didn't really care) the characters and their weapons are all inspired by the signs of the Zodiac. I know it is an overused theme, but meh, works for me. The weapons are named after the brightest star in their constellation except in the case of Gemini. Theirs are each named after the twins' fathers. Also for the purpose of this story, Remnant is spatially in the same place as Earth. You know, with all the Zodiac and stuff, kinda need the stars and the constellations. Except the moon. Moon still shattered. Probably important for canon... at some point.**

**And on that note, please review, comment, critique, etc. Anything you think I could do or should have done better? Let me know, it all helps :)**


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